


I've Been To the Year 3000

by herecomestroublr



Category: Futurama
Genre: AU, Alcohol, Artist!Reader, Best Friends, Book Publishing, Cussing, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, One-Sided Attraction, Slow Burn, writer!reader
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-20
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:41:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 25,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21875338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/herecomestroublr/pseuds/herecomestroublr
Summary: "Do you ever wonder what's out there, [Name]?" 18-year-old Philip J Fry asked you, arms crossed behind his head as he stared at the few stars he could see above New York City."Sometimes. But all I need is you by my side, and I'll be fine."--------After the disappearance of your life-long best friend and longtime crush, you don't know what to do with yourself. Sure, you're a successful writer who's published many books, but it's all pointless. Pointless without Philip, pointless without the one who encouraged you in the first place.In an attempt to escape, you pay an absurd amount of money to be cryogenically frozen for the next 1000 years. You didn't think fate was real, but after you were unfrozen, you begin to believe that stumbling across Applied Cryogenics all those years ago was destiny.Updates every Thursday, Friday, or Saturday now, I guess
Relationships: Bender Rodriguez & Reader, Philip J. Fry & Bender Rodriguez, Philip J. Fry & Reader, Philip J. Fry/Reader, Philip J. Fry/Turanga Leela
Comments: 40
Kudos: 59





	1. Escape to the Future

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, yall! So ive always wanted to write this futurama fic. I have the first 4 chapters already written and will be editing and publishing them as I write more. 
> 
> this is intended to be slow-burn, and fry does end up dating leela for a bit to help the story progress. I wrote the relationship between fry and the reader to how i act with my friends, as i believe im giving your friends love and affection. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy! As usual, title is based on the jonas brothers song year 3000.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You’ll be _fine_ , Miss [Last Name]. I hope you find what you’re looking for when you get out.” She said, making sure you were situated properly in the tube. 
> 
> You smiled politely at her. “So do I."

“I’ll see you tomorrow, then? I find out the news on the status of my book, and I want you to be there, Philip!” You said, pulling away from hugging your best friend. It was almost 11 am, December 31st, 1999, and you were saying goodbye to your best friend and neighbor, Philip J Fry before he went off to work for the day. You’d be celebrating the new year with your family, and although sad he couldn’t be there, accepting as you’d see the 25-year-old the next day. 

“Yeah! I’ll be over as soon as I wake up! It’ll be a late night since the shop doesn’t close until 3 am today.” Philip said, grinning at you as he held your forearms, slowly pulling away. 

“Alright! I won’t open the results until I see you, okay?” You called after his retreating form as he jogged to his bike, the same one you bought him last year after his previous one had been stolen. This time it had a lock. You’re pretty sure he still didn’t use the lock, though.

“Alright, see ya later, [Name]!” He waved, the sun glinting off of his hair and grin wide before he finally took off. 

You waved after him, sending him a stupid lovestruck smile and leaning on your open doorway. Did you mention you’d been in love with him since the 7th grade? He may not be the smartest, but he was your best friend. You’d helped him graduate high school, and he taught you how to drive when your parents kept stressing you out. 

“[Name]? Come inside and help me with the cake! Your sister will be back soon with the roast.” You heard your mother call. 

With a sigh and one last look in the direction your best friend went, you closed the door to your home and headed towards the kitchen. “Coming, Mom!”

\--------

Letter in your hands, you stared impatiently at your bedroom door. It was almost 2 in the afternoon. Philip should have been awake! Even _his_ lazy ass didn’t sleep this long into the day. Sighing, you placed the letter down on the bed next to your own copy of your manuscript and headed downstairs. 

“I’m headed over to PJ’s!” You called out to your mom, who was teaching your hopeless sister how to properly check the temperature of meat for your dinner. 

“Don’t stay too long! Invite them all over for dinner, too. Okay?”

“ _‘Kay!_ ” And with that, you slipped on your shoes and headed outside. You walked across the yard and up to the porch of the Fry residence, opening the unlocked door and heading inside. You waved to Yancy who had been halfway down the stairs, smiling in greeting. “Hey!”

He looked confused. “Philip’s not with you?” 

Your smile turned confused as well. “Um, _no?_ I thought he’d be here. He said he’d come open my book letter with me but hasn’t shown up yet. Why do you ask?”

“He never came home last night. Dad’s at the police station filing a missing person’s report and Mom is asking around town. I came back to see if he’d been here, but his room’s the same as yesterday.” Yancy said as he came fully down the stairs, stopping in front of you. 

You felt a rush of panic overtake you, and your blood run cold. “ _What?!_ Oh my god, where did she check? I’ll help look too! Hold on, let me just tell my family where I’ll be, and I’ll help search.” 

“Okay, just meet us back at the pizza shop on the hour. We’re seeing if he comes back.”

“Copy!” And with that, you rushed out the door. 

After explaining the situation to your family, you headed into the city to help search for your best friend. You spent nearly the whole night searching for him, showing people pictures of him hoping that he’d been seen anywhere. Everyone had been too drunk to remember though, and you’d returned home well past midnight to sleep, worried and exhausted. 

The next morning you were awoken by your sister, who informed you the cops were here and wanted to speak with you. It was then, that the whole situation finally set in. 

So there you sat at your kitchen table, hands shaking around the mug Philip had given you for your 21st birthday and sipping coffee as the officer asked you questions. You barely held it together, and when he left, you broke down in the kitchen, slipping to the floor and letting out long sobs and cries into your hands.

Three days later, he was declared officially missing. 

A month later, both your own family and the Fry family lowered an empty casket into the ground. 

You stayed after they covered the hole, leaning against the new gravestone, knowing there was nothing under the ground for you to mourn. With shaking hands, you reached into your bag and pulled out your unopened letter from your publisher.

“Hey, PJ.” You mumbled out into the calm afternoon. The sun was shining, and not a cloud was in the sky that February day. Valentine’s day was in four days, and you thought of your resolution to confess sitting on your desk, untouched since you wrote it in December. The weather didn’t reflect your mood.

“I have my letter here. The publisher called a few days into the new year to confirm publication details on my book. I hadn’t replied to the letter, so they wanted to check with me to be sure I still wanted to publish my story.” You took in a breath to even out your wavering breathing, holding in tears. “I said _yes_ , of course. Book one comes out in hardback next month. The manuscript was already sent out to critics, and the reviews are positive. I just have to finish writing the next book. Alexander and Audrey _finally_ get to be known.” You closed your eyes and leaned your head against the back of the gravestone.

“I _still_ can’t bring myself to open the letter, though. You _promised_ me, Philip. You _never_ break your promises with me. So I’ll wait. I _have_ to believe you’re still alive out there, somewhere, waiting to come home.” After a while, you finally stood, turning to look down at the fresh grave one last time, knowing you wouldn’t be able to bring yourself here again. “I love you, Philip J Fry.”

With a shaking breath, you turned around and left the cemetery, walking towards what you hoped would be a better future.

\--------

The next few years were quite wonderful for you. On the outside, at least. _The Life of Alexander_ series was published, all three novels receiving wonderful reviews. You went on book tours across the country, even journeying overseas to Europe at one point. You wrote a second series on Alexander and his family after he’d married in your story, and even dipped your toe into the world of fantasy. _The Life of Alexander _was made into a movie series, and you made millions. Yet it felt empty.__

You dedicated each book to your missing best friend, “ _To Philip. With all my heart, I love you._ ” it read. And eventually, you took up ceramics as well, becoming pretty decent at sculpting and throwing. Yet it was still _empty_. 

Sitting in your decent apartment in New York City, you held a photo of you and Philip at senior prom in your hands. He was grinning, and you were looking at him almost starstruck. You smiled vaguely at the memory, before placing the photo back onto its shelf. 

Turning your chair back to your computer, you saved the last of your manuscripts to your USB drive and added it to your collection. Getting up, you putt the little collection into your small backpack of essentials; wallet, sketchbook, a small photo album, Birth Certificate, Social Security Card, the 1st editions of your novels, and one of Philip’s sweaters. 

Slipping on your shoes, you took one last look at your apartment before heading out. You hoped your family could forgive you for this. You’d left your Last Will and Testament on the counter for them, as well as a brief note explaining what you were doing and why. 

Life wasn’t worth living in a world without Philip, and with constant reminders of him everywhere, you had to leave. After paying an absurd amount of money, you’d be cryogenically frozen for one thousand years. 

Eventually, you made your way downtown to _Applied Cryogenics_ , where you’d spend the next thousand years, and slowly went through the check-in process. As previously stated, you were allowed one bag of belongings. After signing a few autographs and taking a few pictures, you put on Philip’s jacket over your own, hugging it to yourself as you placed your bag in the chamber and stepped in. The worker smiled at you reassuringly and set the dial. 

“You’ll be _fine_ , Miss [Last Name]. I hope you find what you’re looking for when you get out.” She said, making sure you were situated properly in the tube. 

You smiled politely at her. “So do I. Thank you very much. I hope your son appreciates the signed copies of _LOA._ ” 

“I’m sure he will. Have a nice nap.” 

“Thank you.” And with that, she closed the door and set the timer. Your last thought as you closed your eyes, was of Philip the last time you’d seen him, waving goodbye as he rode away. 

_”See ya later, [Name]!”_


	2. The World of Tomorrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Wait a minute, [Name Last Name]? Are you the author of the _Life of Alexander_ series?”
> 
> You nodded. “Yeah! How’d you know that? I thought stuff like that wouldn’t matter in this day and age.”
> 
> Bill laughed, slamming his hand down on the table and adjusting his glasses when they moved down his nose. “Oh my god, _no!_ Not at all! We were all forced to read your works in high school, along with William Shakespeare and Homer.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter twoooooooo! *insert the phase two meme from into the florpus*
> 
> the first few chapters are just a story set up, nut after that it starts going into the rest of the plotline and future!
> 
> guess where the title came from. 
> 
> guess.

Letting out a gasp, you stumbled out of the cryo-tube, grasping the top of the door to steady yourself and your breathing. You blinked at the bright white of the sterile room. 

“ _Welcome to the world of tomorrow!_ ” You heard a voice exclaim dramatically to your left. 

“Shut _up_ , Terry!” A second voice said, promptly followed by a smack and a mumbled ‘Oww!’

Breathing finally evened out enough, you slowly stood, reaching blindly behind you for your bag and heaving it over your shoulders. “What… what year is it?” You didn’t dare look towards the window. 

The black man who had yet to introduce himself shoved past the man named Terry and smiled warmly at you. “3004. Welcome to _New_ New York, Miss [Last Name]! I’m Bill, and that doofus is Terry.” He gestured to the blond man, who slowly approached you. 

“ _Hello, traveler!_ ” Terry exclaimed dramatically, earning him another smack from Bill. Terry cleared his throat. “Hello, [Miss Last Name]. Welcome to the future, please follow me to the debriefing room.” It sounded practiced, and Bill snickered, waving goodbye as you left the tube room. 

As you left, you got a brief glimpse of the New New York skyline, and felt your eyes widen, before the door shut behind you as you followed Terry down the futuristic hallway. 

“So, after you are debriefed, you will be examined, given your shots and vaccines, and assigned your career path.” He stopped in front of a door with a window and swiped his badge through the pad next to it. The door opened, and he lead you inside. “Please take a seat while I get the video ready.”

“Okay.” You nodded and took a middle seat at the front of the small classroom, waiting for the video to pop up. 

A few minutes in, and Terry cleared his throat again. “After the video, someone will be in to help you if you have any questions, before leading you to get yourself registered in the system and set up accounts.”

“O….okay. Thank you, Terry.” You smiled politely, and he waved, before exiting the room. The video cut on shortly after, and you watched attentively. 

Aliens were real, the Earth was an important port and _very_ mixed race, robots were all sentient and AI-like, and Earth was basically a united country, run through a congress representing each old country(and some new ones) and the President, who was still based in Washington DC. The video went over important technology and how to use it, how to talk to robots and aliens alike, as well as a brief history of the past 1000 years. 

At the end of the video, a robot who looked very unamused with their existence walked into the room and asked you to follow. Up a few floors, you were led into an office with large windows, where the robot sat at a computer, introducing themself as Patricia. They walked you through paperwork, tax forms, and a housing license, which you apparently had to have if you were not born in the era. 

Next, they filled out your social security and birth certificate again, making copies of your originals and giving them back, and handing you the information and address for the DMV to renew your driver’s license. Finally, they helped you set up a new credit card with your old bank, and put $10,000 dollars in it to help you get off your feet. They could not give you your current balance over the phone due to security reasons, though. 

Finally done with that, you were sent back down three floors, where you were sent into a medical room and given a robe to change into. A kind looking alien with three eyes and purple skin came into the room and smiled at you. They introduced themself as Doctor Derek, and gave you a full physical, as well as all of your immunizations, vaccines, and ran your DNA through the population records to see if you had and living relatives. 

While you waited for those results, you discussed your previous medications for depression and anxiety with Dr. Derek, who gave you preliminary doses for prescriptions and helped you sign up with the health insurance system. It was free, of course, but everyone had to be registered under a category depending on their needs. 

New medical license in hand, you thanked Dr. Derek with a smile and were once again lead from the room to the office of Bill, who smiled kindly at you. 

“Hey, Miss [Last Name]! I hope everything went okay?” He asked, gesturing for you to have a seat in front of his desk while he pulled up some information on his computer, typing into a keyboard that was projected onto the desk. You leaned over to watch in fascination.

“Yeah! It took a while, but this _is_ basically a new world to me, so it’s understandable. I _did_ willingly sign up for this, after all.” You reasoned with yourself. 

Bill nodded and chuckled, pausing in his typing to glance at you. “True, true. Now the last thing I have to do before I finalize your career path is quickly look at your previous occupation. May I ask what you did?”

“I was, well, _am_ a writer.” 

Something seemed to click in Bill’s brain, because he stopped typing and rolled to the side of his screen, eyes wide as he got a better look at you. “Wait a minute, [Name Last Name]? Are you the author of the _Life of Alexander_ series?”

You nodded. “Yeah! How’d you know that? I thought stuff like that wouldn’t matter in this day and age.”

Bill laughed, slamming his hand down on the table and adjusting his glasses when they moved down his nose. “Oh my god, _no!_ Not at all! We were all forced to read your works in high school, along with William Shakespeare and Homer.”

You blinked, absolutely surprised. “Really?”

“ _Yeah!_ We learned about you, how you grew up, and how a few years after your best friend went missing and a very successful career, you vanished and dictated that all book earnings be donated to charities. _There’s-- _/” he laughed, “there’s even a charity foundation in your name that helps the poor, needy, and anyone who needs help that they couldn’t get otherwise.”__

__You blinked, before bursting out into laughter of your own. “ _Really?!_ That hysterical! Oh my god!” Both of you laughed for a bit longer before it trailed off, and you sighed in amusement. _ _

__“Well, you don’t _necessarily_ have to claim the money or the foundation, but it’s there.” With a few more clicks, Bill pressed enter. “ _Aaaaand_ , there! You’re all registered as a citizen of Earth, and a New New York resident! You’ll collect all of your necessary paperwork as you exit the building. Now, after doing a DNA search, we have concluded that your last living relative actually died a few years ago.” Bill blinked. “Oh. Sorry to hear that.”_ _

__You waved him off. “It’s fine, I didn’t expect anyone anyway.”_ _

__He nodded and continued scrolling. “It also says that your ideal career would be in the managerial department, but due to your past in writing and the fact you said you have at least two new manuscripts with you, I’m going to override it and enter in Writer and Freelance Artist.”_ _

__“ _Oh!_ Thank you!” _ _

__“You’re welcome. I’m going to go ahead and include a list of publishers for you, and then we’ll insert your career chip, and you’ll be just about done!”_ _

__You nodded, and when Bill went back to typing, you took the time to look around the room as he finished his paperwork. There was a large window on the far wall overlooking the city, and you somewhat recognized buildings, but many were still brand new to you. You turned your chair further around and came across a wall of photos. “Hey, Bill?” You asked, turning back to look at him._ _

__“Hmm?”_ _

__“What’s this wall of photos?”_ _

__“Oh! Those are all the people who’ve been unfrozen in the past 50 years. The ones near the top are more recent.”_ _

__You nodded and turned back around to study the photos. Maybe you could--you stopped and felt your heart skip a beat, the blood draining from your face. There, on the wall, was a picture of someone you thought you’d never see again._ _

__“ _B-Bill?_ ” You asked, not moving, barely able to find your voice. _ _

__“Yes?”_ _

__You opened and closed your mouth, feeling tears coming to your eyes as you stared at that familiar smile and warm brown eyes you’d grown to love. “Is… can you… _Philip?_ ”_ _

__“ _What?_ ”_ _

__“ _Ph-Philip J Fry was unfrozen?_ ” Your voice was quiet and small as you held back your tears, not wanting to believe it._ _

__“Fry? _Yeah!_ He was the first one of the New Millenia. Why do you ask?” Bill glanced up as you turned the chair back around, his own eyes going wide in realization as he saw your face. “ _Wait._ He’s--”_ _

__You nodded, letting out a choked sob of relief. “ _Y-Yeah._ ”_ _

__“I’ll rush order your papers and information, and print out the address and directions to his workplace. He works at Planet Express.” You nodded and held out your hand for your career chip when Bill asked, and tried to keep it together while he worked. He finished typing furiously fast and brought you to the employee elevator and led you downstairs._ _

__You collected your paperwork and quickly said thanks to Bill as you rushed out of the building, stuffing it into your bag as you hurried through the streets of New New York. You barely heard Bill’s call of good luck but felt yourself smile anyway, happy to know you had a friend so soon._ _

__Very quickly, you’d even have one more._ _


	3. A New Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Hey, guys?”
> 
> “Hmm?” Philip sounded, looking down at you from where you were cuddled into his side. His right arm was wrapped around you, while his left held his beer. 
> 
> “Yeah?” Bender punctuated his sentence with a sip of his beer and turned his head slightly to glance at you. 
> 
> “Do you mind if I buy more furniture and stuff? Like, paint the walls, set up shelves, and get some more cooking utensils and supplies? I know robots don’t need to eat, but the kitchen just looks depressing.”
> 
> “Sure, I don’t mind! You know I trust you. What about you, Bender?”
> 
> Bender shrugged. “Do whatever. As long as there’s alcohol, I’m cool with whatever.”

Panting, you stood in front of the Planet Express building, tears and sweat mixing as they fell down your face. You didn’t know how you felt. Excited? Angry? Sad? Relieved? Whatever it was, all you knew was that you were hopefully about to see the best friend you thought you’d lost--your only living link to your past. The very _reason_ you’d wanted to escape your past was in the building in front of you. 

_Okay._ You could _do_ this. Taking a breath, you pressed the doorbell and waited for someone to come and answer. After about a minute, you reached to ring it again, but the door opened to reveal a heavyset black man. 

“Hello! Welcome to Planet Express! How may I help you?” 

You barely registered that he had an accent before you felt yourself rushing forward, words rushing from your mouth. “ _Philip! Does Philip J Fry work here?!_ ”

The man hesitated, eyebrows furrowing. “ _Fry?_ Yes, he does, but why do you--” 

“ _Please_ , Sir. I _need_ to see him. _I have to see him!_ ” You begged, tears coming to your eyes again. 

The man nodded, leaning away from you with wide eyes before he took a step back. “Sure.” He cleared his throat. “Follow me, please.” 

You fully entered into the building and followed the man through a series of hallways, and up a set of stairs. You heard voices as you passed through what appeared to be a small living room, and the man told you to wait as he entered another room. You got a short glimpse of a spaceship, but the door closed too fast for you to see much of anything else. 

There were more voices, but there was too much conversation, and they were too quiet to make anything out. After a few minutes, the man finally came back, motioning for you to follow. 

“So, yeah, this is the girl.” 

You took a step into the room, and your eyes almost immediately met Philip’s. He stood up so fast that his chair fell over and hit the floor, and nearly tripped over his feet as he rushed towards you, meeting you halfway in a bone-crushing hug. Both of you fell to the floor, landing on your knees and you cried into his arms, Philip’s own tears hitting your neck. 

“ _I thought you were dead!_ ” You wailed. “ _I-I-I-I couldn’t on living without you, Philip!_ ” 

You felt him nod into your neck, letting out a sob of his own. “I thought _you_ were dead! I thought I’d never see you again! _I’m so sorry!_ ” He cried, hugging you tighter into his body. 

You only sobbed in return, clutching the fabric of his jacket like a lifeline while the two on you cried on the floor in the middle of a strange place, while people you didn’t know watched on in confusion. 

After a while, you both calmed down, and a sarcastic sounding voice spoke. “As _much_ as I appreciate the sight of two idiots crying on the floor, could you get the fuck up and introduce yourself?”

“ _Bender!_ ” A female voice chastised, “Be nice!”

“We don’t even know who she is, _Leela!_ Why should _I_ have to be nice?” The male voice, Bender, answered again. 

“Uh, because there’s a girl _crying?_ Didn’t anyone ever teach you how to deal with crying girls?” A second female’s voice sounded. 

“Oh, _shut up, Amy!_ ” Bender said again, before directing his voice back to the two of you. “Yo! Fry! Get your lazy ass off the floor and introduce the girl!”

Philip slowly pulled away from the hug, looking into your eyes, smiling. He wiped his face with his sleeve, before standing up, taking your hands in his own, not breaking eye contact as he pulled you to your feet. He let go of one of your hands, turning towards the group of people before you, eyes red and face puffy, but still just as you remembered him to be. 

“Guys, this is [Name Lastname], my best friend since birth.” 

“Wait, do you mean the _same_ [Name Lastname] who wrote the _Life of Alexander_ series?!” An old man asked, looking utterly flabbergasted. 

“ _You got published?!_ ” Philip asked, turning to you with a wide smile on his face.

You nodded and squealed in excitement as he lifted you in the air, spinning you around. You laughed with him, sharing his excitement. You’d never gotten to open the letter, after all. You never even had the heart to open it, and if your house still existed, you’d imagine that it would still be unopened on your desk in your parent’s house. 

Placing you down, again, Philip hugged you tightly. “I _have_ to read them!” He paused. “Wait, how do _you_ guys know about _LOA_?”

“It’s been taught in the high school curriculum for two hundred years now, Fry.” The older man said. “Right along Shakespeare and Homer.”

“Yeah! I had to write a paper about it once. I think it was about the social commentary on the LGBT+ community of the era compared to our own if I remember.” Amy said, looking thoughtful.

“Mine was on the role reversal of the nerds and jocks in _Pine Trail High School_.” Leela input. 

“I did mine on the accuracy of song production!” The man who answered the door said, before turning to you with a satisfied smile.”You did well, Miss [Name].”

“I did mine on Alexander’s depression and daddy issues, and how they translated into his own parenting style of over-protection!” The old man said, voice much too happy. The room went silent. “What?”

“Anyway…” Leela coughed, turning away to point out each person in the room. “That’s Professor Farnsworth, he is Fry’s great-nephew. I’m Leela, that’s Amy, Hermes let you in, Bender is the robot, and the giant lobster is Zoidberg.”

You waved to each person you were introduced to, and greeted each one. “Hello! As you know, I’m [Name]. I guess you know why I _‘vanished’_ now. I missed Philip.” You still hadn’t released his hand and were not planning on it. He grinned at you, and you smiled back, moving in to hug him again. “I missed you _so much_ , PJ.”

“I missed you too, [Name].” He hugged you back tightly again, and the professor cleared his throat loudly.

“ _All right, all right_. Since you _clearly_ aren’t going to get any work done today, Fry, you can home. Actually, _everyone_ go home! It’ll be like a holiday. We can all _sleep in_ and do what we must to feel _fffffancy!_ ” He continued after a pause, “Yes, tomorrow we’ll have the day off, but I expect all of you here after that, okay? Except you, Amy. Take the week off. You’re looking a little haggard.” 

“ _Hey!_ ” Amy exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips and glaring at the professor. 

“He’s not _wrong,_ ” Hermes stated matter-of-fact, and Amy slumped. 

“Well if that’s it, see ya later guys. Come on, [Name]! Let’s go to my place! Bender, you coming?” Philip exclaimed, dragging you back towards the way in which you came, pausing to look towards the robot. 

“ _Yeah,_ yeah, I’m coming, hold your horses.” Bender drawled, making his way towards the two of you as you left the building. 

Talking a mile a minute, Philip pointed out everything to you as he led the way to his and Bender’s apartment, making sure to point out the liquor store and grocery stores as you passed them. Eventually, you made it to _Robot Arms Apartments_ , and into Room 00100100. When Bender unlocked it, you knew immediately that Philip lived there. It was an absolute _disaster_. 

“Hey, PJ?”

“Yeah?” 

“Where are the cleaning supplies?”

“Under the kitchen sink. Why?” 

You blinked owlishly at him, before dropping your bag and taking off both Philip’s old jacket and your own sweater, hanging them on the coat rack by the door. You placed your bag nearby, before fishing out your wallet and new credit card, handing it over. “Go buy a vacuum and some take-out for dinner. Bender, do you want anything?”

“Booze.” He responded, making his way to the couch to turn on the TV, taking a beer out from his chest compartment.

“Get some good beer--two six-packs--and see if they still make my favorite wine. Okay?” 

Philip nodded, saluting you. “Roger that!” With one last hug, he left the apartment, and you explored, taking a look around to see how much you’d need to clean. 

Making your way back out of the hallway and into the kitchen, you rummaged around, gathering gloves, glass cleaner, trash bags, rags, a multi-purpose cleaner. Donning the gloves, you opened a trash bag and headed out into the apartment to gather the garbage lying around. It was mostly silent as you worked, picking up the trash, then slowly beginning to clean the surfaces in the house. You cleaned all the doorknobs and glass, as well as the wooden surfaces and dusted them as well. The main room didn’t take that long, and when you were done with that and about to head back into the kitchen, you heard Bender speak up. 

“Hey, [Name]?”

“Yeah?”

“You love him, don’t you?” He sounded so sure; like he knew the answer already.

You turned away from the entrance to the kitchen, to see his arm resting on the back of the sofa and head turned to stare you down. No use in denying. “Yeah.”

“He likes Leela, you know.”

“He’s never loved me the way I love him.”

Bender turned down the volume and turned to face you a bit more. “And you’re _okay_ with that?”

You let out a sigh, turning towards the window and looking out over the bustle of the city. “ _Look_ , Bender. I _just_ got him back. Sure, I love him, but I’ve lived almost _30 years_ of my life just being his friend. If he’s happy, then I’m happy.”

Bender blinked, or what you assumed was a robot blinking, before he sighed and took a swig of beer. “You can stay with us if you’d like. I’m sure Fry won’t mind sharing his room.”

You gave him a small smile. “I know he won’t.”

“You have to pay rent, though. Fry and I can barely keep this place going halfsies.” 

“I can pay half. I do have the money, after all. I’m assuming that after inflation, what I had saved in my bank account will be _tremendous._ ”

“Alright! Well, you’re cool in my book. I’ll head to my room so you can finish cleaning out here. I’m probably in your way.”

“Thanks, Bender. I appreciate it.”

“ _Whatever._ Call me when Fry gets back.”

“Copy!” You waved at him, and when you heard his door shut, you went back to organizing and picking up the apartment. 

Halfway through cleaning the kitchen and taking note of what you’d need to buy, Philip came back lugging a large box with two packs of beer on top and carrying a bag of Chinese food. You attempted to help him bring it into the apartment, and called for Bender, who immediately picked the beer off of the top and effortlessly brought the box inside. 

You and Philip spent the next hour eating Chinese food and setting up the new vacuum, reading the instructions to make sure you knew how to work it. Once done eating, and a beer for each member of the household, you got back to cleaning. Much to Bender’s surprise, Philip did not complain one bit, even taking over cleaning certain areas for you, like the bathroom, or picking up his dirty laundry to take to the laundromat the next day. 

Once it was all said and done, the freshly cleaned apartment looked boring and lonely. The three of you took refuge on the couch, some shitty soap opera playing in the background as you drank to your heart’s content, snuggling with your best friend after years of believing he was dead. It was peaceful, and for a second, you could have believed you were back home. 

“Hey, guys?”

“Hmm?” Philip sounded, looking down at you from where you were cuddled into his side. His right arm was wrapped around you, while his left held his beer. 

“Yeah?” Bender punctuated his sentence with a sip of his beer and turned his head slightly to glance at you. 

“Do you mind if I buy more furniture and stuff? Like, paint the walls, set up shelves, and get some more cooking utensils and supplies? I know robots don’t need to eat, but the kitchen just looks depressing.”

“Sure, I don’t mind! You know I trust you. What about you, Bender?”

Bender shrugged. “Do whatever. As long as there’s alcohol, I’m cool with whatever.”

“With me in the house, there will _always_ be alcohol. The _good_ stuff, too.” Bender celebrated, and Philip laughed, pulling you closer to lean his head on your own. 

Maybe you weren’t home anymore, but this apartment, here in the future, might just be able to turn into one.


	4. Familiarity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the two off you left the kitchen to shower, Bender watched on in fascination. Sure, he’d seen Philip try to pick up other girls, but the way he acted around you was strange to him. He seemed to know what you wanted him to do without having to say a word and didn’t complain one bit. Bender wasn’t entirely sure at that point, but he had a feeling that Philip loved you too, he just didn’t know it. 
> 
> Sighing, Bender downed the rest of his drink, before rinsing out the cup and leaving it on the counter for later. It was going to be a long day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey yall! so AO3 seems to be a bitch with formating, SO please don't mind random italics or none at all. that's just me, attempting to fix it. enjoy chapter 4, even if it is a bit short. don't worry, after the world-building, it gets more interesting!

Despite going to bed around 1 am after talking for hours, you still awoke around 6 am the next morning. The blinds had been haphazardly drawn over the window, so the sun still had places to sneak through. Next to you, on his stomach with an arm thrown over you, Philip slept peacefully. You smiled at him, watching his calm face as he let little breaths out of his open mouth. _God _, you missed this.__

__Eventually, you realized you might as well get up and explore the city, as well as run some errands. Slowly, as to not wake the sleeping man next to you, you lifted his arm and replaced yourself with a pillow as you got out of bed._ _

__Quietly, you put your clothes from yesterday back on, leaving the shirt and sweatpants you’d borrowed folded neatly on the dresser. You made your way into the bathroom, washed your face, brushed your teeth, and did your business, before you finally made your way out into the living room, and then into the kitchen._ _

__Bender was already at the table, sipping something from a mug with his face on it. “Sup?”_ _

__“Hey, Bender.” You waved and started the coffee maker in the kitchen begrudgingly. You’d always hated the pre-gound stuff. Coffee on its way, you grabbed the box of Captain Crunch from the cabinet and plopped down next to Bender, reaching into the box and eating the cereal dry._ _

__“You didn’t wake up Fry?”_ _

__“Nah. He sleeps like a log. Only an alarm or pouring water over his head could wake him up.” And you leaving, but you weren’t going to tell him that._ _

__“True that!” Bender raised his mug in a half-toast and took a long gulp. “Whatcha got planned for the day, anyway?”_ _

__“Chores of my own. House shopping. Food shopping. Gonna leave after coffee to grab groceries first. I want to make Philip breakfast.”_ _

__Bender perked up. “You can cook?”_ _

__You nodded, getting up when the timer for the coffee machine dinged. “Yeah. My mom was a chef, so she taught me and my sister to cook. Mostly me, though. I enjoy it more than she does. Well, did, I guess.” You poured coffee into the only remaining mug in the cabinet, one that had ‘Slurm!’ plastered across the side. It was atrocious._ _

__“Can I come shopping with ya then?” The robot looked as excited as he could with his unmoving mouth, and you nodded._ _

__“Sure! Let me drink my coffee, and you can help me make a list!” Bender gave a thumbs up, and let you finish your pathetic breakfast._ _

__Soon enough you and Bender left the house, grocery list in hand, and your wallet in your pocket as you followed your new friend to the store. He helped you pick out all of the cooking utensils and supplies due to you not understanding quite a bit of it. You made sure the styles did not clash, then went onto dishes and cutlery. You got two sets of each, and you and Bender took extra care in picking out an expensive knife set._ _

__Once that was purchased and sent for delivery, you went onto the food and ingredients. Shopping to fill an apartment was always fun for you, so getting brand new storage containers and labels was lots of fun. Bender, of course, helped you pick them out, and you even found a set of mugs with a series of cuss words on them. You quickly added them to the cart, and soon enough the both of you were headed home, using a rented hover-dolly to transport it all._ _

__When you arrived back at the apartment, the delivery robot was already waiting. He helped both of you unload everything into the kitchen, and you and Bender spent the next hour or so organizing and unpacking. Dishes and utensils washed, supplies and ingredients labeled and put away, you high fived Bender. Checking the time, you noticed it was almost 10 am, so you got to work making breakfast._ _

__Bender watched, rapt with attention as you cooked pancakes, eggs, and bacon. You showed him how to properly know how something was done without taste or smell, and opened a bottle of cream liqueur for Bender to drink when Philip awoke._ _

__As you placed the last plate of food onto the kitchen table, Philip himself trudged into the kitchen, yawning and scratching his head. He was barefoot and wearing a t-shirt and sweatpants, and nearly tripped over the transition in the kitchen. Bender snickered, and you hid your smile._ _

__“Good morning, PJ! I made breakfast!” You gestured to the table, and Philip’s eyes lit up._ _

__“Really? Holy shit! I haven’t had your cooking in so long!” He rushed across the kitchen to get to the table, pecking your cheek as he sat down. “Thank you, [Name]!”_ _

__You grinned and followed suit, beginning to eat your own food. You laughed as he drowned his pancakes in syrup, and handed him a napkin when it dripped down his chin. He grinned in thanks, and the rest of the meal was spent in comfortable silence. The sound of the radio playing ‘Classical’ music coursed throughout the kitchen, and you internally laughed at The Beatles and ACDC being considered classical._ _

__“So! What do you wanna do today?” Philip asked towards the end of the meal, taking a few more bites of scrambled egg while you sipped at your milk._ _

__“Home shopping! Bender and I knocked out the kitchen, but I still need clothes and bathroom things. We also definitely need furniture, and I need to go to the bank as well as get a phone. Which apparently you can have a personal phone? That’s still such a weird concept to me!”_ _

__Philip nodded. “Took me a while to get used to it too. They’re really cool though! Mine’s red!” He stood when you did, and helped you bring everything to the sink, helping get rid of the leftovers in the compost chute, and rinsing dishes while you placed them in the dishwasher._ _

__“I hope they have purple then.”_ _

__“It is your favorite color!” He grinned at you, and you grinned back, and then you were hugging again. “You need a shower.” He said._ _

__“So do you.” You retaliated, laughing with him._ _

__As the two off you left the kitchen to shower, Bender watched on in fascination. Sure, he’d seen Philip try to pick up other girls, but the way he acted around you was strange to him. He seemed to know what you wanted him to do without having to say a word and didn’t complain one bit. Bender wasn’t entirely sure at that point, but he had a feeling that Philip loved you too, he just didn’t know it._ _

__Sighing, Bender downed the rest of his drink, before rinsing out the cup and leaving it on the counter for later. It was going to be a long day._ _


	5. What's Love Got To Do With It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Do you ever wonder what's out there, [Name]?" 18-year-old Philip J. Fry asked you, arms crossed behind his head as he stared at the few stars he could see above New York City.
> 
> "Sometimes. But all I need is you by my side, and I'll be fine." You replied honestly, turning your head to smile softly at him.
> 
> Philip snorted, turning towards you as well, the city lights reflecting in his eyes. "You're _cheesy_ , [Name]." 
> 
> “I know. But you’re still here, _sooo_ …” You winked at him and giggled when he rolled his eyes. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Flashback chapter!!! Gonna have a few of these to set the stage and make sense of the story, as well as important things that happened in the past. 
> 
> An unnecessary amount of MATH went into this chapter, as well as research to find music that they could still listen to. 
> 
> Once they hit 1999 they'll have more to listen to considering how much came out then, and at some point im going to have the reader find music that i like to listen to from the 2000s and 2010s
> 
> The next two chapters are also already written, so enjoy fry being sad in love

"I _still_ can’t believe I'll be graduating in May," Philip told you, hanging upside down off the side of your bed on December 31st, 1992 at 11:34 in the morning. 

You glanced up from your desk where you had been doodling your characters for your book and quirked a smile at the 18-year-old. " _I_ can. I spent all my free time making _sure_ you would. I even quit Writing Club for you, PJ." 

He frowned at you, pouting. "I still feel bad that you did that. You didn't have to!"

"I know, but you’re my best friend! I _want_ you to graduate with me. It would be weird if we didn’t, after being basically attached at the hip.”

“Thanks, [Name].” He quirked a smile at you, and you suppressed a blush at his stupidly handsome face and twinkling brown eyes. 

Instead, you grinned back at him. “Of course! Anyway, what do you think of my final sketch for Alex?” You picked up your paper and turned towards him, turning the paper upside-down and holding it in front of his face. “I gave him earrings, and I want him to speak Spanish.”

“Isn’t Audrey Italian, though?” Philip asked, taking the paper to study the drawing, moving it slightly to meet your eyes. 

"Yeah, but only half Italian. And that's the joke! Because Spanish and Italian are so close, I want them to _mostly_ understand each other when speaking either one." 

He nodded in understanding and pursed his lips as he studied your character sheet. "Can I see Audrey? Is she done yet?"

"Yeah, just let me find it." You took the paper from his hands and stood up, going to a drawer near a separate workstation in your room. 

Unknown to you, Philip watched your form move with rapt attention. He'd been in your room thousands of times over the years, watched you thousands more, and yet he still noticed something different every single time. Today he noticed how the cold grey of the clouds outside turned your skin tone and hair more blueish, and the way that your ass looked in--

Philip slipped off the bed and fell to the floor with a loud 'THUMP' as his neck cracked. " _Owwww!_ " He cried out, legs positioned weirdly against the side of your bed, his back almost flat against your carpet. 

"Philip!" You exclaimed, placing your papers down and quickly rushing to his side, sitting on your knees and pulling him by his shirt so his legs could fall down. "Are you okay?" 

He nodded, looking up at you, before bursting out into laughter. You soon followed suit, giggles of your own escaping your mouth as you laughed at the stupid situation. As you continued to laugh, your door was basically slammed open by your older sister, who was visiting for the winter break before she had to go back to school.

"The _fuck_ are you idiots doing?" She asked. Also known as sibling-speak for, ' _Are you okay?_ '

"I fell." Philip managed through his giggles, backing up and using you as a ladder to sit up, then tilting his head down once he was sitting cross-legged in front of you.

"It was funny." You grinned and rose on your knees to check his head for any bleeding, not even having to ask him to do so.

Your sister blinked almost owlishly down at the two of you before she sighed. “Mom said to come down for lunch. She made cucumber sandwiches and tea-infused scones.” You nodded, and with that, she left the door open and stalked off down the hall, then finally down the stairs. 

With your sister gone, you went back to check Philip’s head more thoroughly. “No bleeding, _but_ it looks like it’ll bruise. I’ll get you some pain meds for the oncoming headache. Go get an ice pack and I’ll meet you downstairs for lunch.”

“ _Kaaaaaaay!_ ” He called, tilting his head back and leaning back on his hands to grin at you. 

You grinned back and fought a blush, before gently planting a kiss on his forehead and whispering, “Be more careful, _okay?_ ”

Philip’s cheeks also tinted pink. Whether it be from the kiss or the sincerity in your voice, he didn’t know. “ _Okay._ ”

“Go ice your head now, PJ.” He nodded as much as he could without ramming his forehead into your own and slid out from under you to stand up and leave the room. 

As soon as he was out of sight, you groaned to yourself and hid your face in your hands. You _had_ to control yourself around him. _You had to._

\--------

Later that night at Tracy Donovan’s New Year’s party, Philip watched as you laughed and chatted with your old Writing Club friends, hugging a bottle of cheap beer to himself as he leaned against the wall. 

He was pretty sure he loved you at this point. Growing up, Philip was _always_ with you. Always playing with you, always by your side. In middle school both his parents and your own had fought to make sure you were in the same classes together, knowing you were the only one who could keep him on task. In high school, you somewhat parted ways, but having some control of elective subjects, you still had class with him. And now, 180 days left of your high school career, tipsy as he watched you interact with people who weren’t him, Philip J. Fry was sure he was in love with you. 

It had started off slowly, really. He noticed small things. How his heart would beat faster when he heard your voice or saw your face. How his palms would get sweaty around you. How he found himself making sure to shower and brush his teeth and always wear clean clothes. He already knew you like the back of his hand--he could probably draw you perfectly with his almost non-existent artistic skills--so when he realized what he was feeling, he didn’t know what to do. 

You were his first _everything_. First hug, first date, first crush, first kiss, first sexual--Philip felt himself flush and shook his head to get rid of _that_ thought. Glancing back over at your form, he noticed you scan the room for him, and wave him over enthusiastically, your own bottle of beer in hand. 

“ _PJ!_ ” You practically yelled over the music as he came near, taking a swig of his drink as he stopped at your side. 

“Hey, [Name]!” He gave you a side-hug and glanced away from the gaze of your friend Bethany, who seemed to see right through him. “Hi, Beth.”

“Hi, Fry.” She greeted, arms crossed over her black and gold sweater. 

“Beth said that midnight is in 15 minutes! Come _on_ , I wanna watch the fireworks from the roof!” You exclaimed, tipsy excitement lacing your voice as you grabbed Philip’s hand and dragged him to the stairs of Tracy’s massive house and up to the attic to access the roof.

He helped you push open the old window with rusted hinges(after you both finished off your beers) and climbed up first. Once he knew it was okay, he helped you scale the side of the roof and sit down near the top, facing the city where you knew the fireworks would begin. 

Faintly, you could hear Whitney Houston’s voice drift out from downstairs as the party continued on. You could see a few stars in the light-polluted sky of New York City as the day’s earlier clouds had cleared up for the night. The moon hung half-full to your side, and you glanced at your best friend as he moved to lay down against the shingles, you quickly following suit

"Do you ever wonder what's out there, [Name]?" 18-year-old Philip J. Fry asked you, arms crossed behind his head as he stared at the few stars he could see above New York City.

"Sometimes. But all I need is you by my side, and I'll be fine." You replied honestly, turning your head to smile softly at him.

Philip snorted, turning towards you as well, the city lights reflecting in his eyes. "You're _cheesy_ , [Name]." 

“I know. But you’re still here, _sooo_ …” You winked at him and giggled when he rolled his eyes. 

You turned to look back up at the stars, and Philip watched you for a moment longer. Sure, he loved you, but you gave no indication that you felt anything other than familial or platonic love for him. He decided that he’d move on. He loved you, but holding onto something he’d never achieve would not end well. 

Below, _The Rose_ by Bette Midler flowed out into the night air, playing even as the yelling of teenagers got louder as it neared midnight. 

_Just remember, In the winter,_

“Thirty seconds!” A voice called out the backdoor to the throng of teens outside as well.

_Far beneath the bitter snow,_

There was scrambling and the sound of the glass door basically slamming open. 

_Lies the seed, That with the sun’s love,_

“TEN SECONDS!” 

_In the spring, Becomes…_

“3! 2! 1!”

_The Rose._

“ _HAPPY NEW YEAR!_ ” 


	6. The Start of Something New

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> quick question: why did hsm songs have to go that hard? They didn't have to, but they did, and here we are, 14 years after the 1st movie came out. 
> 
> fun fact: currently working on chapter 8, and it was EXTREMELY HARD to not write a kiss scene and confession, but i got past it. PLATONIC LOVE FOR NOW ONLY, MY GOOD FRIENDS
> 
> also maybe a gardening scene, idk I havent written it yet. anyway enjoy!

A week later saw you cooking dinner at around 5:30 pm, waiting for when Phillip and Bender would arrive home around 6:15. 

You’d been busy since you’d moved in with the two boys. Every room had been repainted and redecorated, the lighting had been updated with better bulbs, the furniture had been replaced, the bathroom updated and deep-cleaned, and the carpet in the living room and hallway replaced with wood floors. 

You’d also gone shopping for yourself, buying a whole new wardrobe and undergarments, as well as bathroom essentials and little things you knew you’d enjoy. The first editions of your books were on a shelf on honor in the living room, and you’d even narrowed down a new publisher to see about publishing the next ones you had with you. 

All you had left to do was to settle in, and hopefully find a place to work on ceramics, and possibly the other artwork you’d gotten into. While you published your books under your own name, your other artwork used the alias of _‘Sn8wman.’_ You didn’t want people to like your artwork because it was from the author of _LOA_ , you wanted them to like it because it was _good_. 

Before you’d left, you’d even sold a decent amount of both functional and artistic pieces, so you considered yourself a somewhat success. You’d even picked up sewing and fashion in the past, and were excited to begin making your own clothes again. Or clothes for Phillip. 

Speaking of, the front door opened, and you heard two voices head toward the kitchen. 

“I’m just saying, she could have been nicer to us! We delivered the package with minor damage! It wasn’t even fragile! Only the box was crushed a bit.” 

“She could have, but you _were_ the one who thought riding her dog like a warhorse was a great idea, Fry. I’d be pissed too if someone did that without permission, or without inviting me as well.”

“ _You rode the dog, too!_ ”

“Besides the point, Fry.”

 _What?_ The hell happened at work? Peeking your head out of the kitchen, you watched as Philip took off his shoes, defending his actions while Bender attempted to deflect. "Uh, _guys?_ " Two heads turned to look at your apron-clad form. "What the _hell_ happened at work?"

Philip waved you off, leaving Bender to himself as he made his way into the kitchen to see if you needed help with dinner. "It doesn't matter now. Anyway, do you need help? I feel bad that you do all this for us!" 

You smiled at him, picking up the wooden spatula you had been using to stir the vegetables in the pan. "No, I like taking care of you! I missed you, so let me do this." Pause, add the udon noodles to the pan, "but if you really want to help, set the table and fill the bowls with rice?" 

Philip saluted you and got to work as you finished up. Pouring the contents of your pan into a serving dish, you handed it to your best friend as he set the table, and retrieved a platter of sushi from the fridge. Setting that on the table as well, you uncovered the shrimp and vegetable tempura and quickly got the teriyaki chicken out of the oven as well. You sat down and poured yourself some tea from the little pot, and soon enough the two of you were eating dinner. Philip told you of his adventurous day as you ate, explaining the dog-riding incident in great detail. You almost choked on rice in between laughs, and Bender ended up coming in to join the commotion, stealing Philip's sake to add to the said commotion. 

Eventually, you brought out dessert, and soon enough you and your best friend were singing an off-key rendition of ' _Walking On Sunshine_ ' as you cleaned the kitchen. Bender laughed from the table, piping up to insult the two of you, but not entirely meaning it. 

You missed this.

\--------

The next day saw you dragging Philip and Bender around the city with a real estate agent, attempting to find a studio to work in. 

"Tell me again why I had to come?" Bender complained as you walked through an old factory near the water. 

"Because you know the city better than the both of us? And PJ is kind of an idiot." 

Speaking of, " _Hey!_ Name! Look at me!" Philip called, hanging upside down off the railing on the catwalk access to the ceiling lights. 

You gestured to Philip with a ' _you see what i mean?_ ' look, and Bender nodded, taking a drag from his cigar. 

"Yeah, okay. Solid point. Anyway, what do you think of this place?" He glanced around, gesturing to the dirty windows and too-high lighting.

"It’s okay, but not what I need." You stated, hands on your hips as you sighed. 

" _Yo!_ Realtor! This place isn't doing it. You got some others to show?" Bender called out to the unsettling person standing by the doorway. 

"Yes! Quite a few! The next stop on our list in downtown in the shopping district! It used to be a fashion and clothing boutique!" Every word out of their mouth sounded too excited, and their smile was a bit unsettling, but they had been quite helpful so you figured you'd let it slide.

"Alright. PJ! Get down from there, we're leaving!" You called out. 

" _Okaaaaaay!_ " Philip sounded. 

After a series of ridiculous events to get himself down and 5 bandaids later, the trio of you were following the real estate agent once again to the heart of the city. 

"I hope this doesn't scar." Philip rubbed the bandaid on his cheek with a frown on his face, Bender smoking a cigar while you tried to smile at your friend. 

"I'm sure it'll be fine! You know how much both of us get cut, and the only thing to really scar is my hands and that one burn to have on your leg." You replied. 

"True. Anyway, are we there yet? It's kinda hot out today and I wanna get ice cream!"

Bender flashed you a questioning look, and you snorted. "Take your jacket off, dumbass." Bender snarked, and you laughed when Philip looked like he realized he was wearing a jacket. 

"Oh! Yeah!" He quickly pulled his arms from his sleeves and tied his signature red jacket around his hips. 

Reaching into your bag, you pulled out an extra pair of sunglasses and handed them over to him. "Here. We'll get ice cream later." 

"Woo!" Philip cheered, and Bender gave you another glance, one that you knew the meaning of. 

You ignored him in favor of watching the city as you walked by the buildings and shops. Eventually, between two brick-faced buildings was a shop with three stories, and almost entirely made of windows in the front. Your eyes lit up, and you rushed ahead as the real estate agent unlocked the door. 

"This one was built in 2993 to house a fashion boutique for a designer of a wealthy businessman! Sadly, the business did not take off, and a few years later the bank foreclosed the property! The top floor is a loft where the artist lived! It has a full kitchen, two bathrooms, a living room, and three bedrooms! The other two floors are where the artist worked!" The agent explained before letting you explore. 

You looked excitedly towards Philip and Bender, before walking into the building. Off to the side of the large double doors was a gigantic reception desk and a waiting area of sorts sitting on a raised platform. Taking the few steps down onto the main floor, you grinned at the high ceilings and wide space. About halfway in was a partial wall that opened up into more workspace and changing rooms, as well as a secondary desk area. At the back wall was another set of windows and sliding doors overlooking an overgrown garden. 

Right before the partial wall was a staircase that slowly circled up, and you quickly ran up to check out the second floor. The second floor was basically a large room, with two offices boxed in with glass windows overlooking the city. There was another bathroom as well, and a small kitchen area with a sink and area for a refrigerator. The floor up here, unlike the painted concrete of the first floor, was a gorgeous hardwood of varying shades. 

Before the others could follow, you headed up the next set of stairs to find a door to the loft. Finding it unlocked, you entered and grinned. The living room had a sunken-in sitting area, followed by more hardwood flooring in the kitchen area with an island stove and countertop space. There was an industrial hood over the stove, and three ovens on the wall behind it. The double sink was huge and deep, and the spaces for the fridge and dishwasher were also quite sizable. There was plenty of pantry space as well as cabinets and drawers. 

As you rushed past the stairs to get a look at the bedrooms, you caught the sight of Philip and Bender who had finally reached the third floor. They both looked impressed, although Philip's was more of a child-like wonder. 

The master bedroom was ginormous, with a massive walk-in closet with built-in shelves and drawers, and a bathroom with a walk-in shower that could probably fit eight people. There was a separate bathtub, and a double sink as well as a linen closet. The other two rooms weren't as large as the master, but they were still sizable. They each had a closet and were connected to each other by the bathroom in the middle. 

Eventually, you made your way out into the main room again to see Philip and Bender opening the kitchen cabinets while the agent stood and smiled widely, all teeth, near the door to the stairs.

“So! What do you think? I have more properties if you’d like to see some more!” The agent exclaimed, grinning at you. 

“No, this is the place. I’ll buy it.”

“Really?” Philip sounded reluctantly excited, and Bender nodded. 

“Yeah. This the place, [Name]?”

You smiled. “Yeah. This is it. Where do I sign?”

\--------

The month of April was as busy as you’d been since arriving in the future. After purchasing the building, you’d begun the laborious task of designing and updating the whole building, and hiring the crews to take care of it all. You’d had all the electrical and plumbing work completely updated, and had the entire building fully inspected for literally any problems. 

Everything had been painted to your liking, and the flooring had been sanded and resealed on the second and third floors. New non-slip paint was also added to the concrete flooring of the 1st level, considering you’d be working with clay. After everything was designed and updated, you began the task of setting up the second floor as an office space for your soon-to-be business. Brand new state-of-the-art appliances were purchased and installed, and the second floor was soon a display room for finished artwork and stocked with all types of other crafting supplies--such as paints, fabrics, jewelry-making materials, and framing supplies. One office you’d turned into your own(for writing and management) and the second you left mostly unfinished for whatever person you’d hire to help you with everything. 

Finally came the task of setting up the ceramics area, which took basically the entire bottom floor. 

After figuring out where you’d wanted everything, you searched throughout the Clay and Ceramic supply community to find good kilns, wheels, and tools. The back half of the shop was filled with supply shelves, glazes, chemicals for mixing glaze, and multiple types of kilns. The front half was a workstation. One-third of the front of the shop was filled with work tables and chairs, and the other two-thirds had neat rows of wheels for throwing, as well as a custom wheel you’d had made to your standards. There were sinks and shelves all along the walls, and art from all ages decorating the space. 

The reception area had also been refurbished. The desk had been repainted and a new computer and comfortable chair had been purchased, as well as filing cabinets and a miniature fridge hidden from sight for the receptionist. The waiting area had chairs added in, and display cases were empty and ready for artwork in the window. The building had also been listed as a business and given a phone number for the landline. 

All that was left was to hire employees and wait for the shop’s sign to arrive, as well as figure out what to do with the garden(you couldn’t decide, so it stayed overgrown for the time-being). You’d decided on calling it ‘Sn8wman’ after your old art alias, and the shop’s logo was a wide-brimmed hat with the milky-way galaxy printed inside. 

Sighing happily as the delivery crew brought in the last of the clay, you smiled at Bender. He’d been surprisingly helpful throughout the entire process, and after unfreezing had become a fast friend. He’d even taken off a bit of work to help with the renovations and planning. Sure, he was snarky and could be a _bit_ rude at times, but he seemed to respect you for some unknown reason. You weren’t complaining. 

“You excited to start interviewing people?” He asked, taking a sip of the beer you’d given him earlier out of gratitude. 

“Yeah! I hope the advertisement you helped me get will help draw people in and get them excited for the new opening.”

“That TV interview you have next week will also probably help with publicity.” 

“Another reason that I chose to add a shelf with signed copies of my books for people to buy.” You gestured to the book display next to the reception desk, and the robot nodded. 

“Good choice.” He paused, watching as a younger-looking man struggled to carry too-much porcelain while his co-worker chastised him for it, eventually taking the box into her arms with little struggle. “Are you gonna move out, by the way? I could care less about what you choose, but I think Fry will be... _upset_ if ya move out.”

You pursed your lips, crossing your arms over your chest as you thought about it. “No, I don’t think so. I’m _probably_ just going to use the loft area if I need to crash for the night. You’re also welcome to use it too. I know how much PJ’s habits can get on your nerves.” 

Bender took another swig. The teenage boy lifted another box, but this time got help from a young robot. “He _does_ snore like a motorboat sometimes.”

You nodded and snickered. “That he does.” After a considerable silence, Bender spoke up again. 

“Are you gonna be okay?”

You turned to look at him, arms dropping to your sides and eyebrows furrowed. “Hmm?”

“He plans to ask Leela out on an actual date.”

You slumped. “Oh. Yeah.” Sigh. “ _That_.” You clenched your hand into a fist and turned your head away from Bender’s piercing gaze. “I think so. I’ve seen him with his other girlfriends before. It _hurts_ , but as long as he’s my friend I’ll be fine. He’s only ever seen me as a sister anyway.”

Bender wanted to tell you no, Philip _definitely didn’t_ see you like a sister but decided against it. Let the humans figure out their own shit. He needed to stop getting involved in relationships. But as he watched you sign the paper to confirm the proper clay delivery, he couldn’t help but feel a wave of sympathy for you. 

“Wanna go get a drink before Fry gets off work?” He found himself asking. 

“Hell yeah!”

At least he could distract you from this sadness. For the time being.


	7. Here With You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “WHAT A TOUCHING STORY. HUMAN EMOTIONS ARE QUITE SOMETHING, AREN’T THEY, LINDA?”
> 
> “That they are, Morbo.” She smiled, and there was a pause. “Well, that’s really all we had planned to ask you today. Thank you so much for doing this interview with us!”
> 
> “It’s my pleasure!”
> 
> “BE PREPARED FOR NEXT MONTH, EARTHLINGS, WHEN MISS [NAMe]’S NEW FANTASY NOVEL, _MAGIC WITHIN_ HITS SHELVES.”
> 
> “Up next! Chef Elzar’s ten tips to the sharpest kitchen knives! Stay tuned!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a filler chapter!
> 
> this is a kick-off. after chapters 8 and 9, the set up should HOPEFULLY be done and ill start integrating some episode plots into the story. i also have a sheet of notes for places for them to visit in later chapters. 
> 
> oh! and chapter 8 will be released in two parts, possibly on the same day? idk i need to stock up my chapter supply again
> 
> anyway, enjoy! sorry that its kinda short
> 
> title is Here With You by Allstar Weekend

"...and they did not survive the fire," Linda stated solemnly, lowering her head in a brief silence. "UP NEXT! Recently unfrozen from a slumber of 1000 years, author of _The Life of Alexander_ series has agreed to appear on our show and promote a new series!" She exclaimed, a wide grin on her face. 

"AFTER THE BREAK!" Mordo yelled, and the camera cut off. 

The two news anchors sat and chatted in their chairs a bit longer, while you stood off to the side with Philip, Leela, and Bender. Leela had kindly offered to give you a ride to LA in the Planet Express ship and was also proving herself to be a very calming person while you basically had a heart attack out of nervous energy.

"You’ll be fine, [Name]! You’ve gone on talk shows and had interviews before, right?" You nodded. "Then there's nothing to worry about. I’ll make sure these idiots don’t do anything stupid." She gestured to Philip and Bender, who were standing by the catering table. Philip was scarfing down food, while Bender was chugging the expensive beer provided for the robots that worked on set. 

You chuckled. "Okay. Thanks, Leela." 

She smiled. "No problem!" 

"Miss [Last Name]!" Linda exclaimed, walking towards you and Leela, Mordo closely following behind her. "Thank you so much for doing this interview with us! I’m a fan of your work, and it’s an honor to meet you!" She cheerily stated, smiling at you.

"YES, YOUR WORK IS QUITE EXHILARATING TO READ. I STAYED UP FOR THREE WHOLE NIGHTS TO READ THE _LOA_ BOOKS TO PREPARE FOR THIS INTERVIEW." Mordo yelled. You and Leela took a step back at his overwhelming voice, while Linda merely blinked. 

"Y-yes! Thank you for having me and my friends! I’m happy to share my story, and my work as well." 

Linda laughed at your joke, and Leela snickered. "Great! Be ready in two minutes!" 

"WE WILL CONDUCT THE INTERVIEW SHORTLY." Mordo reiterated, following Linda as she walked off. 

Your smile dropped. " _Philiiiiiiip_!" You whined, rushing over to your best friend in a stupid nervous terror. 

"What?" He managed around a mouthful of pizza.

" _I can’t do this!_ " You cried out, shaking his shoulders and looking up into his eyes. 

His eyebrows furrowed, and he put his pizza down. "What do you mean? You’re the one that contacted the station?" He sounded confused. 

"I’ll have to tell them why I froze myself! It’s embarrassing!"

"Can’t you just, _lie_?" Bender asked, sass and sarcasm laced in his tone. 

"[Name] _never_ lies. She has a policy of brutal honesty, no matter who gets hurt." Philip told him. 

Bender gave you a look. "She never lies? Well, that's-" 

" _Bender._ " You gritted out. 

Leela and Philip looked confused, and Bender sighed while you glared him down. “-- _Fantastic!_ It’s cool that she never lies!” His eyes said ‘ _You Owe Me_ ’, and you slumped in relief. 

“...Aaaaanyway.” Leela redirected. “What’s so wrong with telling them why you froze yourself? You did it out of love for your best friend, who was basically your brother,” Both you and Philip flinched, though neither of you noticed the other (Bender noticed). “That’s such a pure kind of love! You guys have a great relationship from what of seen. Years of learning about each other and becoming SO ingrained in each other’s lives--it’s no wonder you felt helpless without Fry!” She lamented. 

“Miss [Name]? Please follow me.” A gelatinous mass wearing a headset asked as they made their way up to you, inciting a new panic in your veins. 

“Thirty seconds to go!” A voice sounded, and the studio was busy again. 

“ _W-wait!_ ” You tried, hesitating to follow, glancing back at your friends. It was Philip’s warm gaze, though, that had you calm in an instant. 

“You’ll do great, [Name]. I’ll be right here if you need me.” 

You didn’t hesitate then, rushing into your chair for the interview as the make-up artists smoothed your hair and rushed out of the camera shot just as the count-down began. 

“Three… two… one…!” The director pointed to the stage where you sat, and the cameras were rolling. 

“WELCOME BACK, PUNY EARTHLINGS!” Mordo exclaimed, looking much too big in the tiny chair he was given. It was almost comical. 

“Here with us today, is Miss [Name] [Last Name], the long-thought dead author of The Life of Alexader series, here to promote her newest novel series. [Name], how are you today?” Linda began.

“I’m quite good, thank you for asking me, Linda!”

“TELL US, HUMAN, WHAT IS YOUR NEW SERIES ABOUT? I LIKED THE FIRST ONE, SO I HOPE THIS IS ALSO GOOD.” Mordo asked, crossing his legs and placing his gently clasped hands in his lap. 

“Thank you for asking, Mordo! My new series is a fantasy series, set in a world where magic runs everything, and those with little or no magic are looked down upon. The story focuses on the prince of the faerie kingdom--born without magic and unable to fly. His mother gone at a young age and raised by the elven servants, the prince is disgruntled with his position.” 

“DISGRUNTLED? DOES HE NOT WISH TO RULE OVER ALL THOSE BELOW HIM?”

You laughed respectfully. “No, actually. He does not want to be king. And after discussing it with his father on the eve of his 21st birthday and the summer solstice, he and his best friend are almost killed by a rogue troop of royal guards.”

“Oh my! How enthralling!” Linda grinned.

“Yes, indeed. The story is basically the prince figuring out why the guards tried to kill him, while also learning about his past and the mystery behind his non-existent powers.” 

“How interesting! It sounds like such a great plotline! Tell us, where did you find your inspiration? Or rather, where do you find the inspiration to write?”

“YES, MISS [NAME], PLEASE TELL US.”

“I read a lot as a kid. Growing up, my family wasn’t the most well-off. When my best friend--and neighbor--got off of school, we’d walk to the public library where we’d wait for my older sister to pick us up. While I read everything that caught my eye, Philip would draw. We actually first came up with Alexander in that library.”

“Philip? Is this the same Philip your books are all dedicated to?” Linda asked. 

You felt yourself blush in embarrassment, and briefly met Philip’s wide and shocked eyes off-camera. “Y-yes. All of my books are dedicated to my best friend.”

“How sweet!” Linda cooed, and Morbo nodded. 

“TELL US, MISS [NAME], WHY DID YOU DEDICATE ALL YOUR BOOKS TO ONE PUNY HUMAN? WHY NOT MANY PUNY HUMANS?”

You sighed. “Well, I guess I can’t keep this hidden much longer.” You paused and reached up to fidget with the necklace you were wearing. “Right before the first _LOA_ novel was published, Philip went missing. It was my way of letting people know that even if he was gone, there were people who remembered him and hoped he was okay, where ever he was.”

Linda’s grin dropped to a sympathetic smile, and Morbo’s yell turned into a quieter yell. “Tell Me, Miss, [Name]. Why Did You Go Missing?” He asked.

You couldn’t look at Philip, but you felt his gaze pierce into you as he watched, rapt with attention. You’d never truly opened up to him about those years you’d thought he was dead, but your reflex to be brutally honest would not stop for even a moment. “I was very depressed after Philip went missing, you see. I still kept up my cheerful persona for book tours and signings and even hid my sadness around my family, but I was broken. Without the only person who knew me best--the only person who truly and unconditionally loved me for me--I couldn’t go on. To live in a world without him was--” You stopped, taking in a shaking breath as you felt tears come to your eyes. 

“[Name], you don’t have to continue if it makes you upset to think about,” Linda told you gently, handing you ther box of tissues on the small table to her right. 

“No no, it’s alright. If my novels are taught in the school curriculum they should at least know what happened to the author.” You quirked a smile and took another deep breath before continuing. “To live in a world where I was _constantly_ reminded of the _one person_ who meant the most to me, I couldn’t bear it. It was then, as if by fate that I stumbled upon _Applied Cryogenics_. I figured I could start anew in an era that knew nothing of me, or my family, or my missing best friend. Turns out though, that same friend had accidentally fallen into a Cryo-tube the night he went missing. One-thousand years later, and my idiot best friend is standing right there.” You pointed off-camera at Philip, and one of the cameras turned to capture him for a moment. He waved awkwardly and quirked a smile. 

Morbo wiped an actual tear from his eye and sniffled. “WHAT A TOUCHING STORY. HUMAN EMOTIONS ARE QUITE SOMETHING, AREN’T THEY, LINDA?”

“That they are, Morbo.” She smiled, and there was a pause. “Well, that’s really all we had planned to ask you today. Thank you so much for doing this interview with us!”

“It’s my pleasure!”

“BE PREPARED FOR NEXT MONTH, EARTHLINGS, WHEN MISS [NAMe]’S NEW FANTASY NOVEL, _MAGIC WITHIN_ HITS SHELVES.”

“Up next! Chef Elzar’s ten tips to the sharpest kitchen knives! Stay tuned!”


	8. Because You Live - Part One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The lights in the room dimmed, and on the large computer monitor a very familiar scene focused on two kids sitting on a couch, one with her face in her hands, and the other looking very worried as he held onto his feet, not knowing what to do. 
> 
> You knew this. It was the day your dad left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> part one! this weekend will be for exclusively writing chapters ahead and editing them because i DONT WANNA BE STRESSED
> 
> anyway, enjoy!
> 
> idk what will be in store for yall next, but thanks for sticking with me and reading!
> 
> the title is Because You Live by Jesse McCartney, the heartthrob of all young girls in 2007

" _Why didn't you tell me?_ " Philip asked you, sounding sad and hurt, but not mad.

After finishing the interview in LA, Leela piloted the four of you back to New New York. It was kind of awkward, although the trip only took at most 15 minutes. Once again docked in _Planet Express_ , you all exited the ship and left for the day. Bender went home, while you and your best friend headed to your new shop to work. You worked in relative silence apart from quick questions for the next few hours. You had a pizza delivered, and after dinner, you sat on the new couch on the top floor of the building, no lights but those of the city coming from the window. 

"I… I was scared that this was all a dream." You finally whispered. 

"A dream? Why would it be a dream?" 

"After… after you'd gone, I'd have dreams about finding you again. Some were in a few days, some in months or years, and some were in different worlds and different times. And they were all _so vivid_ that I couldn't help but doubt _this_ reality." You’d tell him about the dreams someday, but this wasn't the time or place. "If it _was_ a dream, I wanted to stay asleep _as long as possible_ because--" your eyes began to water, and you let out a sob, finally feeling your walls breaking down. "I missed you _so much_ , Philip James Fry. _I love you_ , you're my _everything_ , my _only_ family left." You admitted, tears rolling down your cheeks as you whimpered to your best friend. 

His eyes widened and his cheeks turned a bit pink, but you don't believe that he understood your meaning. "I uh…" he looked away, and you saw the glint of tears in his eyes. Philip sniffled and wiped his eyes with his sleeve. He took in a stuttering breath, before finally turning back to you. "It's been hard, ya know?" 

"...go on." 

"At first, it was really cool! A new place, a new world, new people!" He gestured, waving his hands and rocking back with a smile that shortly dropped, along with his arms. "But then Bender and I found old New York. I took him around the city, and it all hit me--it was _gone_. My mom, my dad, Yancy," he paused and turned to look directly in your eyes. " _You_. It was _all gone_ , and I couldn't do a thing about it. I was _alone_ in a world I didn't know. No friends, no family, no money--my _only_ living relative an old man. I've been _so alone_ these past few years. Sure, I made new friends, but none are like you." He reached over to hold your hand and looked down at the couch cushions in embarrassment. Then quietly, he added, " _I love you too_." 

You smiled, looking up at him with pink cheeks and teary eyes of your own, before leaning over and wrapping your arms around him. Philip hugged you back, arms encircling your own waist as he buried his face in your neck, similar to when he held you again in his arms in quiet desperation after you'd ran through the door of Planet Express. Philip had spent too long without you--he didn't want to lose you again.

" _....never again._ " He mumbled into your hair as he moved his head to rest atop your head.

"PJ?" 

"I'll _never_ lose you ever again." He reiterated, hugging you tighter.

Clutching his sweater tighter, you moved your ear to rest over his heart, listening to the quiet and rhythmic thumping of his heartbeat. " _And I won't lose you._ "

\--------

"So you guys made up, yeah?" Bender asked Philip a few days later as they watched an _All My Circuits_ re-run. You were out at a book meeting and would return later after some errands.

"Yeah! We talked it out, spent some quality time together, and then we reminisced about the past!" He made a sweeping gesture with his hand and sipped at the glass of water he was holding. 

"Hmm." Bender acknowledged, glancing at his companion as he sipped at his own beer. That was something he found very strange. 

It had been a few months since you'd arrived and began living with himself and Philip. Unfrozen in March, it was now the middle of June, and summer was in full swing. The AC cranked on high to keep the apartment cool. Philip still continued to wear his signature red jacket indoors. Bender found this weird, as Philip usually liked it warm, and would even sleep in nothing but his underwear before. Now the place stayed cool, and he slept in sweatpants and a long sleeve shirt. Philip also stopped drinking beer during the daytime, instead choosing water or any of the many juices you purchased for him. He did his laundry on a weekly basis now and constantly helped out with chores. Bender noticed how when you were around, his destructive behavior and personality almost _ceased_ to exist; instead of stupidity, he seemed to have some common sense. You were Philip's impulse control, it seemed. Even if he didn't understand it himself.

It was strange to him, really. Robots didn’t have the same emotional range as humans did, so he couldn’t understand specifics, but he did get the bigger picture. Which is why when Philip seemingly changed in front of his eyes did he understand you were the reason why. Before he had seemed almost unhinged--but now, he listened to others(even if he didn’t take their advice into account), was considerably calmer, and fewer accidents happened when they were making deliveries. It was so strange to the robot. He'd known Philip for almost five years now, and he'd never once acted this way. Who knew a single person could change him this much?

\--------

Okay, maybe he was always this way, Bender deduced. 

A week after the TV interview, Philip had forgotten his lunch at home and had texted you to bring it over. You came around 10 am, just as Philip and the crew had gotten back from a few deliveries. You’d been to _Planet Express_ a few times to drop things off for Philip over the months you’d lived together, so you’d gotten to know the building and the employees quite well. Which was why you were hauled up in the lab with the Professor and hooked up to a machine with your best friend. 

“Tell us again, Professor Farnsworth, _why_ are they hooked up to this machine?” Leela asked, her arms crossed over her chest as she watched the old man press a few buttons with Amy’s help. 

“As you have probably noticed, Fry here isn’t as stupid as before. I believe it to be a direct influence from [Name], but I can’t be sure. This machine here will scan their memories and childhood and condense the most important moments into a movie for us!”

You glanced at Philip, the panic in his eyes matching your own. “ _W-wait!_ You _never_ said--” 

“ _Pish posh!_ ” Professor Farnsworth dismissed, waving his hand. 

“Yeah, can you like, _not_ do that?” Philip asked, starting to remove the sensors on his head. Almost immediately Amy rushed over and strapped his arms in place, and Philip frowned. “ _Hey!_ ”

You glanced at him nervously, before turning towards the Professor again. “ _Listen_ , Professor. We can tell you about our childhood and teenage years. Is this _really_ necessary?” You tried to reason.

“Oh yes! This way it’ll be in a fun little movie format for us! Don’t you wish to go down memory lane? See yourself in a different light?”

“ _No!_ ” 

“ _Absolutely not!_ ” 

The Professor shrugged. “ _Amy!_ Pull the lever!”

“Okay!”

“ _NO!_ ” You and Philip exclaimed just as the machine turned on, and you both felt a tingling sensation. A bright light flashed, and as it faded you heard a ringing in your ears. Feeling incredibly dizzy, you felt your head fall back onto the headrest of the chair, nauseous and wishing you were dead so you didn’t have to feel this way. As your hearing came back, you heard an irritated voice and felt gentle hands removing the sensors from your head.

“ _\--and she’s never done this before!_ ”

“Done what?”

“ _Been a part of your experiments!_ I’ve had time to adapt,”

“Did he just use _‘adapt’_ in the _proper context?_ ” A voice whispered.

“Did he just _use_ the word ‘adapt’?!”

“But _she_ hasn’t! That was really mean!” 

Blinking, your eyes focused on the figure in front of you, and worried brown eyes started into your own. “Philip?”

“ _Hey_ , [Name]. Are you okay?” 

“Yeah, I _think_ so. I feel ill.” You said, sitting up and clutching your head. Philip helped you from your seat and lead you from the lab and into the meeting room. 

“I’ll get you a coke and some cookies. You should feel better after you get some calories in you.” Philip told you, ignoring his friends and coworkers who seemed surprised over his vocabulary. 

You nodded as he sat you down in a chair, and watched as he left the area towards the kitchen to your right. Meanwhile, Leela, Bender, Hermes, Zoidberg, and Scruffy the Janitor all sat down at the table. Bender sat to your left, and the seat to your right stayed empty. Soon enough Philip came back, sitting down and opening your drink for you. He helped you take a sip as your hands were shaking, and Bender watched you. 

Finally, Amy and the Professor came into the room, inserting a small device that looked similar to a USB drive into the giant computer screen. “Alright, everyone! Let’s watch!” Professor Farnsworth exclaimed with excitement, going to sit down next to Hermes and taking a handful of popcorn he’d made earlier. 

“I’m so excited! I love reality TV, and this is as real as it’ll get!” Amy exclaimed, clapping her hands as she settled in. 

“Do you think it’ll show that one Halloween?” Philip whispered to you, cheeks pink as he remembered the Halloween party of 1992 and its subsequent outcome. 

“I _really_ hope not. They don’t need to know.” You whispered back, ignoring Bender’s questioning gaze(How did he do that? He didn’t even have eyebrows!). 

Philip’s equally nervous expression calmed you down, but also made you somewhat angry. You _knew_ why you were angry, but you _refused_ to be angry about it as you weren’t even dating. 

“Oh! It’s starting!” Hermes exclaimed, pointing at the screen. 

The lights in the room dimmed, and on the large computer monitor a very familiar scene focused on two kids sitting on a couch, one with her face in her hands, and the other looking very worried as he held onto his feet, not knowing what to do. 

You knew this. It was the day your dad left.


	9. Because You Live - Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As you walked down the street, you didn’t notice as a certain robot took a drag of his cigar, watching as you walked away, hand-in-hand with your best friend. After today, Bender was sure of two things. 
> 
> One. Philip had always been this way, the movie was proof enough. And two. Philip was hopelessly in love with you as well. 
> 
> Bender took another drag of his cigar and sighed. “It’s like watching my own personal Soap Opera.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry its so late! Enjoy!

“Are you okay, [Name]?” Philip whispered nervously, not knowing if it was okay to touch you as you cried on your couch. The 6-year-old boy felt bad, sure, but he felt worse that he couldn’t help--that he didn’t know how to help. 

You shook your head no as you cried, and your neighbor and best friend reached out a hand nervously. He hesitated, retracting it before a determined expression overcame his features. Uncurling his legs from underneath himself, Philip moved to your side on the couch and brought you into as tight a hug as a little boy could. You let out a stuttering breath and hugged him back. 

"Is there something I can do?" Philip asked quietly after a while, the sound of your older sister and your mother conversing in the kitchen drifting out into the living room. 

" _Just stay by my side._ All I need is you, and I'll be okay." You managed, hugging your friend as tightly as you could.

"Okay." 

Later, when your sister came out to check on both of you, she found you asleep in each other's arms and quickly retrieved the camera to take a picture. 

\--------

Glaring down at the toys, an 11-year-old you sighed and moved onto the next section, clutching your little purse of allowance. It was December, and you were shopping for Philip. Or _attempting_ to, at least. 

"[Name], _sweetie_ , do you need help?" Your mother asked. It had been 20 minutes of this, and while she wouldn't show her anger, she was getting quite antsy. 

" _No_. I wanna find something good myself, but I don't like _anything_ here! PJ won't like it!" You crossed your little arms over your chest and glanced up at your mother with a frown. 

"Well, why not just make him something you know he'll like! Something special?" She supplied, and you grinned. 

" _Yeah!_ Okay! Thanks, momma!" You exclaimed, rushing down the toy aisle where a figure had caught your eye earlier, but you deemed it not good enough. "I know exactly what to do!" You said, picking up the astronaut toy in your hands and rushing off to go pay for it while your mom continued to shop, a knowing smile on her face. 

Meanwhile, across the store in the arts and crafts section, Philip held Yancy's hand as he looked through the different craft supplies presented to the store patrons. While Philip was also 11 and Yancy was 15, his parents did not trust the youngest Fry to go off alone without supervision. So, his own older brother was on babysitting duty while his parents shopped in the dollar section of the store. 

"Can you _hurry up_ , Philip?" The teenager whined, sick of his little brother's sweaty palm.

"It's gotta be _perfect_ , Yancy! [Name] _has_ to know she's my best friend!" 

Yancy rolled his eyes, already knowing at such a young age that both you and Philip had crushes on each other. At the insistence of your mother, though, he chose to stay quiet. "She'll like whatever you get her." 

" _No!_ It's gotta be _special!_ " Philip insisted, dragging the reluctant teen out of the craft aisle and around the large department store. 

Yancy groaned, but let the hyperactive boy drag him around. He'd let Philip go off on his own, but he didn't want to get in trouble, and the only person he seemed somewhat calm around was you, so hand-in-hand it was. And so, Philip continued to drag his brother around the department store before a booth set up near the jewelry section caught his eye. An engraving booth. After checking the amount of allowance he’d saved, and bugging his older brother for the three extra dollars he needed, the little boy went up to the woman at the booth and placed his order. 

Later, on Christmas morning when you opened your gift from Philip, you cried. A small locket shaped like a heart, when opened, had the phrase ‘I’ll always be by your side’ engraved on the left. On the right, was a small picture of you and Philip earlier in the year at the Independence Day parade. 

Philip almost cried too, when he saw the astronaut doll customized to look like him.

\--------

Middle school. Also known as the weirdest years of your lives. While your sister was a senior in high school and Yancy a junior, you and Philip were only 8th graders. It was May, and soon the year would be ending. You were excited to become a high-schooler, but nervous as well. 

It was Friday night and your weekly sleep-over with Philip. This week you’d chosen his house, as he’d gotten a new record, and wanted to show it off. You had a great night; Mrs. Fry ordered pizza, and after you’d watched a scary movie, you’d gone outside to star-gaze and eat ice cream by the bonfire Mr. Fry had started. Your Mom and sister came over, and the seven of you roasted marshmallows and made smores until you and Philip got too tired to continue. 

You’d gotten ready for bed, brushed your teeth, and soon enough you and Philip were in his bed, lying side by side, attempting to sleep. 

“ _Hey, [Name]?_ ” He whispered, rolling over to face you.

You rolled as well and blinked at the 13-year-old beside you. “ _Yeah?_ ”

“Are you scared about high school? I am.”

“ _Kinda?_ Meghan H said that her older sister said you’re not allowed in high school if you haven’t kissed someone, so that’s making me feel nervous.”

“ _She told me that too!_ No one wants to go out with me, though.” Philip pouted. 

You held your tongue. You had recently realized your crush was more than just a crush, so saying anything might ruin your friendship. “No one wants to kiss me either.”

It was silent for a moment, and Philip looked away from your face, eye scrunching up as he thought quietly to himself. “ _What if_ …” He flushed. “What if we...uh, _kissed?_ ”

Your eyes widened and you felt yourself blush. “Uhhhhhh….”

Philip panicked, sitting up. “ _J-just so we can say we’ve done it!_ I’m sure _lots_ of people will wanna date us later! Think of it as uhhh... _practice!_ ” He nervously said, watching as you sat up on the bed to face him. 

“O-okay… it’s so we can get into high school, right?” You knew it wasn’t.

“ _Y-yeah!_ ” He knew it wasn’t. 

“Right…”

You scooted closer to him, leaning in with your hands holding onto your knees. Philip did the same, leaning in as he used the bed for support. You tilted your head in a way you’d seen in movies, and paused, _absolutely_ nervous _and_ embarrassed when you felt his breath on your lips. Your wide eyes met his own, and both of you hesitated. With a deep breath, you leaned in and closed your eyes, and felt your lips touch his own in the briefest of kisses. 

Eyes open again, you stared at him, cheeks matching his own flushed ones. “Ummm…” Was all the response you could manage. 

“I--” Philip tried, reaching out to you but dropping his hand in hesitance. His eyebrows scrunched, and he looked to be in thought before a determined expression overcame his features. Taking a deep breath, he held your face between both of his hands, before he went in for another kiss. This one much less delicate and hesitant. 

You blinked in surprise before you found yourself leaning into him, pressing your lips harder against his own, and your hands snaking up to rest on his shoulders. You kissed him until you ran out of breath, and when you pulled away panting, you barely had time to take in another breath before he kissed you again. And again. 

And again.

And _again_. 

Eventually, he pulled away to hug you tightly, burying his face in the hood of the sweater you were wearing. “ _Stay by my side?_ ”

You smiled. “ _Always_.”

\--------

This was it-- _senior year_ \--your last official Halloween as a teenager. For some strange reason, both yourself and Philip had been invited to a Halloween party hosted by a member of the football team. Seeing as you were--

\--------

“ _OKAY! NOPE! THAT’S IT, SHOW’S OVER!_ ” You exclaimed, standing abruptly from your chair and rushing to turn off the monitor, Philip close behind.

“ _What? No!_ It was _just_ getting good!” Amy whined, dropping her handful of popcorn to the floor. 

The scene continued to play out as you helped Philip with his hair, and you thanked whatever god there was that you had a tender moment at the house before you left for the party. Otherwise, they’d _know_. 

“ _Yeah!_ I want to see what happens at the Halloween party!” Hermes input, pouting. 

“Scruffy wants ta see some more kissin’.” Scruffy stated. 

“ _AbsoLUTELY not!_ ” Philip cried, finally shoving you out of the way and turning off the monitor just as it showed you walking up to the theatre kids. He quickly grabbed the small memory stick from the drive, and threw it to the ground, ramming it with his foot and breaking it. 

You couldn’t meet his eye, memories of that Halloween flooding into your brain and Philip panting in panicked anger before you. 

“ _Fry!_ That was quite rude! Why would you stop such an entertaining movie?” The Professor asked, sounding irritated with his relative. 

“This _isn’t_ a fucking _movie!_ It’s my _life!_ It’s _OUR_ lives! You can’t just _use us_ for entertainment!” Philip ranted. 

“But your childhood is so heart-warming! Like the time you helped Fry calm down after he broke his arm, [Name]! Or! Or when he went out of his way to help you finish your science project, knowing he’d fail his own!” Leela input, speaking of the different memories shown beforehand. 

“It’s _private!_ None of your business!” Philip almost yelled, anger laced in his voice as he argued. 

Soon enough the whole room was arguing, save yourself and Bender, who looked between your red face, and Philip’s own. You could barely meet his eye, the relief you’d felt earlier from the ‘Movie’ being destroyed quickly replaced with dread as you watched Bender seem to figure something out. He looked deep in thought, then confused, before he looked out-right shocked as his gaze finally rested on you. 

“ _Oh my go--_ ” His voice barely reached you over the arguing, and after a minute more Bender let out a high-pitched whistle until everyone shut up. He didn’t waste a single moment before you heard him ask, all serious, “What _did_ you guys do on Halloween? I _think_ I know, but I’d like for you two to confirm it for me.” The robot said, toned in a way that implied he knew exactly what went down that Halloween night. 

Philip whipped to face you, eyes wide and almost panicked, knowing you couldn't lie. It had been your policy, your _one_ rule throughout your whole life, to _always_ tell the truth when asked. Sometimes you were brutally honest and it got you into trouble, which is why Philip was looking at you, hoping you'd stay quiet. 

You didn’t.

"We… were drunk. And young, and _stupid_ , and we _wanted_ to fit in. So we went home and… we had…" 

"We had sex. For the first time." Philip said, cheeks pink as he watched you, eyes unreadable. "We wanted it to be with someone who we _trusted_ , so who better than your, uh, _best friend!_ Right?" He held his hands out at his sides in an ‘Agree?’ motion, and you didn’t know what to say. 

Hermes burst out into laughter, along with Leela. Amy looked almost shell-shocked, and the Professor looked indifferent. Scruffy didn’t care, and Bender stared you down. You still had no idea how to react. 

“ _Th-that’s_ why you’re so embarrassed?” Hermes managed to get out between laughs. 

Leela nodded. “Yeah! That’s _soooo_ stupid! _Ahahahahaha!_ ” 

“Sh-shut _up_ , guys! It was really different back then!” Philip tried, voice cracking as he turned to you. “Help me out here, [Name]!”

You finally blinked and nodded. “Y-yeah! You don’t s-sleep with your _best friend!_ ” 

“ _Pish posh!_ ” Professor Farnsworth finally said. “We _all_ have a dalliance or two with our close friends at one point or another. Nothing to be ashamed of!” 

“But if it was in the movie, doesn’t it mean that it affected them in some way that changed their relationship? That’s how the machine works, Professor!” Amy spoke up. 

Hermes finally calmed down enough, but Leela was still laughing. “Does it now? Well, how did it change them?” He asked, clearing his throat after. 

“That, I am not sure of, as they destroyed the movie, and I sadly did not save their memories.”

“I thought we had auto-save set up?” Amy inquired. 

“I turned it off. Trying to work and having a _‘Save Now?’_ message pop up every five minutes was infuriating me!”

“ _Professor!_ ” Amy whined. He ignored her, continuing to think. 

“The only way we’d know is if they go back onto the machine. Come along, you two, it doesn’t hurt as bad a second time!”

“ _No!_ ” You exclaimed, sounding worried at the idea of them all finding out you were in love with him. 

“ _Hell no!_ You saw what happened last time! I’m _NOT_ letting you do that to her _again_.” Philip defended, tone final and angry with the professor for insinuating such a thing. 

“They could tell us?” Leela finally input after calming down significantly. 

The room went silent, all eyes turning to look at you and your best friend. Philip’s eyes widened, and he fidgeted next to you. He opened his mouth, and suddenly everyone was talking at once. Words flew over your head, and for some reason, you noticed that Zoidberg had left the room, having been silent throughout this whole exchange. Everyone but Bender got up from their seats and came towards the two of you, throwing out questions and pestering you to spill. Philip held his hands and tried to decline, but knowing how he got when people started to gang up on him and seeing the panic on his face, you got _pissed_. 

Shoving your way in front of him, you crossed your arms and glared at everyone. “Back the _fuck_ off! Can’t you see you’re making us uncomfortable?!” You snapped, almost snarling as you protected him. 

“ _But--_ ” Hermes tried. 

“ _Shut up!_ ” You snapped. “Our _lives_ aren’t your _entertainment_. I didn’t come here to be _forced_ to share my _private life_ with a bunch of people who have _no regard_ for privacy. So kindly _fuck off_ and leave us _alone._ ” With that, you lead Philip from the room and down to the lockers, grabbing his belongings. You decided to leave his lunch, as he’d be back anyway, and it was just some cucumber soup. Once outside the building and a block towards home, you turned to your best friend. “Are you okay?”

He nodded, clutching tightly to the strap of the messenger bag you’d gotten him, knuckles pale and straining. “Y-yeah. Thanks for getting me out of there. I don’t get panic attacks that often anymore, but it looks like you can still keep one from happening.” Philip said, quirking a small smile at you. 

You reached for his hands, gently unclasping their grip on the bag and holding them in your own. “I’d do _anything_ for you, PJ. You’re my _family_ , I _love_ you.” You told him, smiling at him with what you hoped was the face of platonic love. 

“I-I love you, too, [Name].” He said, squeezing your hands gently. 

“How about we go get some ice cream, and then go to the park?”

“I’d love that.”

As you walked down the street, you didn’t notice as a certain robot took a drag of his cigar, watching as you walked away, hand-in-hand with your best friend. After today, Bender was sure of two things. 

One. Philip had always been this way, the movie was proof enough. And two. Philip was hopelessly in love with you as well. 

Bender took another drag of his cigar and sighed. “It’s like watching my own personal Soap Opera.”


	10. Over My Head

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You _said_ you would tell me if something was wrong. We _agreed_ to tell each other. You _promised_ , [Name]! I can’t--” He let out a sob, trying to calm himself down as he turned to look at the ceiling. “I _can’t_ lose you, too. Not _again_. Not _ever_ again.” 
> 
> You felt your own eyes start to water. “I’m sorry, Philip.”
> 
> “ _Are_ you though?!” He snapped. “Are you _really_ sorry?! You _need_ to take care of yourself! You _HAVE_ to!! You _can’t_ just--” He gestured wildly, clenching his fingers before throwing his arms up in the air in exasperation, frustrated tears escaping his eyes as he stared at the ceiling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Long time no see! 
> 
> Sorry that it took so long to post the next chapter. I knew what direction I wanted the story to go in, but I just didn't like the direction that chapter 10 was going in, so I re-wrote it from the beginning. This one feels much better for character development and the relationship between fry and the reader. It is kind of sad, but I wanted to explore the reader's feelings about her family being gone. It was also, once again, difficult to NOT write a confession scene. Every "I love you" in this chapter is completely meant in a platonic way. And yes, you call Yancy Fry Sr dad, because you grew up next door and the basically helped raise you. Fun fact! The Fry family was your emergency contact throughout your schooling days, and your family for fry's.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading and thank you for all of the encouraging comments! 
> 
> BENDER IS SCHEMING OHOHOHOHO!!!!
> 
> Chapter Title: Over My Head (Cable Car) by The Fray

With the end of May fast approaching, you found you had little time to worry over the incident with the movie. Instead, you found yourself busy with your shop, and busy with the publisher. 

You had received the finished version of your manuscript to look over while the cover was being finished, and you had to say; seeing the intricate map on the front page, and the illustrations throughout the novel made you excited. Your favorite part though had to be the dedication. _"To Philip; my family, and best friend. Once lost, now found."_ You were sure the fans would go crazy for that, considering how many theories you’d read over who Philip was. In the meantime, you put away the manuscript and got to work on pieces for the shop. 

You had finally found a manager to hire, a lovely graduate student who had majored in business and minored in ceramics and ceramic production. Their name was Kelly, and you found them quite helpful as you cranked out pieces for display. And while you _did_ have the extra help, you found yourself staying at the shop later. Getting up earlier. Spending less time at home. Soon, you just slept in the room upstairs; waking up, downing a granola bar, and texting Kelly to bring coffee and food the next morning. 

Bender still came by to help, but he did so less and less. When he did come, it was usually to try and convince you to rest; with little success. Eventually, you found yourself dragging, and couldn't even keep up a conversation with Philip when he stopped by a week and a half before the opening of the shop. 

You were on the second floor, finishing up your dress for the opening night, and found yourself pricking your fingers as you ripped out the seams for the third time. You kept nodding off, and sewing into the fabric where you shouldn't be. You needed to get it done. You _had_ to. And when it was done you would start on something else. You would--

"Hey," a warm hand on your shoulder startled you, and you dropped the seam ripper. It rolled off your lap, over the fabric, and underneath the work table you were seated at. You watched as it disappeared from sight as your vision got blurry. 

"---ou okay? _[Name]?_ [Name]!" 

" _Huh?_ " You blinked, turning your chair around to the worried brown eyes of Philip.

He frowned. "Are you okay? I've been calling your name for five minutes now,"

You looked blankly up at him, your mind slowly taking in the words he spoke. " _O-Oh!_ Sorry, PJ. I'm kinda tired. I was just concentrating is all." 

Philip exchanged a worried glance with Kelly, who was over by the kitchenette, running water to make themselves tea. "It's almost 5 pm. We were wondering if you wanted to order food, or if you still wanted to cook, but I think we're just gonna order out." He said, glancing at you with a worried expression before standing to retrieve his phone. 

" _N-No!"_ You stood up quickly, the blood rushing back into your legs and making you sway. "I can still cook! What do you guys want for dinner?" You asked, leaning on the side of the table for support.

"[Name]! Maybe you should sit down." Philip rushed back over to help you, but you held out your hand to stop him, sweat dripping down your forehead as the world blurred around you.

"No. I-I'm _fine_ , really."

"We're…. _worried_ about you, [Name]." Kelly gently stated, placing their mug back on the counter and making their way towards you. "You don’t go home anymore, you _barely_ sleep, barely _eat_ \--all you do is work."

"I--" 

Kelly held up a hand to stop you. "Yes, I _know_ the shop is opening soon, but you need to think about your own health, too. There is no shop without you." 

"S-Seriously, guys! I’m fine! Really!!" You said, taking a step from the table, and wondering why the ceiling seemed to get further away. You didn't comprehend much after that, but you heard Philip call your name, and the sensation of being lifted, but soon you were out. 

And then there was nothing.

\----Late September, 1995---- 

_Sitting by the bedside, you watched the steady pace of the heart monitor and Philip's breathing as he slept soundly, his hand held tightly between both of yours. You were 20 years old and didn't expect to be sitting in a hospital room while your best friend slept beside you, ever so quiet._

_His appendix had ruptured suddenly, forcing you and him to the hospital in the middle of the night while your families slept. It was almost funny, how little they seemed to care. You knew they did care, but when the ambulance woke them up, both your own family and Philip's decided to go back to bed once they saw you had the situation under control. You said you'd call them when he woke up, so there you were, 6 am in the morning, hungry, worried, and tired as you waited for him to wake up. He had been put on the first floor of the hospital, so you could see the landscaped area just outside the window of the small room._

_He’d only gotten out of surgery a little under an hour ago, due to complications with his heart. Philip had claimed his heart attacks were from drinking so much Coka Cola, but you knew better. Sure, that had definitely been a contributing factor, but you’d overheard his parents discussing it after the first one--he’d been born with smaller and defective arteries in his heart. They never thought he’d ever get a heart attack, so they hadn’t gotten him any medication to help prevent him from getting one. After the second heart attack, they did, and Philip’s teachers were all informed of his condition as well. Even though you knew he wouldn’t die, it was still scary when the nurses began rushing into the surgery wing in the middle of Philip’s own surgery. They had told you he was fine, and you broke down in relief as they continued to operate on him. So there you were, hours later, watching him peacefully sleep._

_The door opened, and you turned your head to watch as the nurse on duty walked into your room. “Hello, Mrs. Fry.” She greeted quietly._

_You blushed. “Oh. I’m not--”_

_Her knowing smile said it all, and you stopped talking. “I just came to switch out his IV and check up on him. The cafeteria is open now if you want to get something to eat.”_

_You nodded, and stood, releasing Philip’s hand slowly. Leaning down, you brushed his hair from his forehead and placed a gentle kiss there. “I’ll be right back.” You whispered, before avoiding the nurse’s gaze as you left the room, wallet in hand._

_You made your way to the cafeteria, the quiet hallways of the hospital making way to the buzz of the common area, and soon the cafeteria itself. Nurses, doctors, EMTs, and family members mingled throughout the area. The smell of hashbrowns, eggs, and coffee hit your nose, and you felt your stomach rumble. Quickly, you made your way into the line for food, studying the menu as you waited for your turn. Deciding on pancakes, hashbrowns, and bacon, you moved forward in the line._

_“Next!”_

_Stepping up to the man behind the glass, you placed your order and stepped to the side to wait as he made your pancakes. It didn’t take too long, as the cafeteria had just only opened twenty minutes prior, and few people were in the hospital. Food in hand, you grabbed a bottle of orange juice and ordered a coffee from the cafe. You went to pay, and soon enough you were tucked away in a corner, eating your food with vigor. You hadn’t realized how hungry you’d become, and soon the plate was empty, and you were carrying your coffee back to Philip’s room._

_As you passed a phone booth, you hesitated. Glancing at the clock on the wall, you decided that at least Mr. Fry would be awake, and took a few coins out to call home. Dailing the number, you waited for the phone to pick up. After the third ring, the familiar voice of Yancy Fry Sr. blasted through the phone._

_“Fry Residence. What do ya want?”_

_“Hey, Dad.”_

_“[Name]! Is he awake yet?”_

_“No, he should be awake in a few hours. The doctor said the anesthesia should wear off by 8.”_

_“How is he? Did everythin’ go okay?”_

_“There… there was a complication with his heart during surgery, but it wasn’t bad. He’ll be okay. The doctor said he got an arrhythmia.”_

_Yancy Sr. hummed in consideration. “Well, nothin’ we can do ‘bout it now.” You let out a weak chuckle. “ ‘Nuff ‘bout him. Are you okay?”_

_“I…” You hesitated. “He scared the **shit** out of me, that’s for sure. He woke me up sobbing in pain and asked me to call 911. I was lucky enough I had our overnight bags on hand, or I’d be wearing pajamas right now.” You chuckled, and Yancy let out a loud laugh of his own. “But yeah, I’m okay. It **was** pretty scary watching everyone rush into his operating room, but he’s peacefully sleeping now. The nurse made me go get breakfast while she checked up on him. I’m heading back now, actually.”_

_“Well, I’ll tell everyone what’s happenin’ when they wake up. We’ll come by with lunch.”_

_“Thanks.”_

_“Of course. Now, go an’ get some rest. I’m sure ya’ve been up all night.”_

_“Okay, I will. Bye.”_

_“Bye, now.” With that, the phone went dead, and you headed back off to the hospital room._

_You spent the next few hours in and out of consciousness, too worried to fall asleep completely. The nurses would come in every hour to check Philip’s vitals, and eventually, you turned on the TV to watch the morning news. As the weather report came on, you heard a groan from your right and whipped around. Quickly you turned off the television and got up to sit beside Philip on the bed. He raised his arm to cover his eyes, and you watched as he squinted, slowly letting the light wash over his face._

_“I feel like **shit**.” He mumbled, finally removing his arm to frown at you. His face was a bit pale, but otherwise, he looked okay. Disheveled, but okay. _

_You left out a relieved laugh and wiped at the tears trying to escape from your eyes. “You **did** just get cut open and prodded. I doubt it feels **good.** ” _

_He tried to laugh but winced. “ **Owwww.** Okay. No jokes. They hurt.” He pouted. “Help me sit up?” _

_With a nod, you stood up and slowly helped him scoot backward and sit up against the pillows. When he was situated and no longer grimacing in discomfort, you got him a glass of water. Philip quickly downed it, and once the empty glass was back on his bedside table you asked, “Why didn’t you tell me?”_

_“Hmm?”_

_“The… the doctor said you would have felt the pain for a few days. That you didn’t say anything.”_

_Philip looked down in shame. “I didn’t want to worry you. You’re so busy with school, and your job, I just… didn’t feel like it was anything **bad.** ”_

_You gave a bitter laugh. “ **Clearly** that’s not true.” With a sigh, you sat back down on the bed and held one of his hands. “Listen, PJ. I love you. You’re my **family**. I **always** worry about you. So **please** , whenever you feel bad, **tell me**.”_

_“Okay. As long as you promise to tell **me** when you don’t feel well. Best friends forever, right?” He released your hand to pull you into a hug, wincing when he turned. _

_“ **Of course**. I’ll **always** be by your side.”_

_“ **Always**.”_

\--------

Eyes fluttering open, the first things you registered was the white tile of the ceiling and the rhythmic beeping of the various machines surrounding you. Next, was the numbness of your arm, where a needle led to a dripping IV. Various patches were on your arm, which you recognized as medical sensors from your informational classes. The room looked fairly fancy, with a built-in bathroom, miniature fridge, a sink, and a fairly large television that was quietly playing an _“All My Circuits”_ re-run. A wardrobe sat next to the bathroom, and various labeled cabinets decorated the wall around the sink. To your left was a small sitting area, and a large window with the blinds partially closed. You noticed clothing thrown over the couch, and a couple of empty soda cans and water bottles sitting on the coffee table. To the right was the door into the hallway. It was closed, but on either side, you could see through the partially closed blinds and into the hallway. Glimpses of people walking by mesmerized you for a moment, before finally, you noticed a weight on the bed near your hip. 

Glancing down to your left, Philip slept, arms crossed underneath his head while he used them as a pillow. His face was turned towards you, so you could see how pale he looked, and how red and puffy his eyes were. You glanced around the room again. Had he been living here? You felt a panic run through you at that. How _long_ were you out?! What DAY was it?! 

“ _Ph--_ ” You cut yourself off, clearing your throat and reaching for a half-empty water bottle on the nightstand. You downed it and tried speaking again, this time shaking the shoulder of your best friend. “ _Philip_. Philip!”

He jolted awake, bolting upright and staring at you with wide eyes. He blinked, and before you could say anything else, his lip trembled and he broke down into tears of relief, flinging himself at you. “ _Y-You’re okay!_ Oh, thank _god!_ ”

You were confused but hugged him back nonetheless. “What happened? Why am I in the hospital?” You felt Philip tense up, and he pulled away, helping you sit up before standing. He didn’t meet your eye. 

“I’ll… go get the nurse. Bender and Kelly told me to call them when you woke up.” With that, he left the room. 

The noise of the hallway drifted in through the open door, and shortly afterward a tall, tired-looking man wearing scrubs entered the room, followed by a shorter woman wearing nicer looking scrubs and a long white coat with the sleeves rolled up. 

“Hello, Miss [Name]. I’m Doctor Lynn, and this is Ahmad.”

“... _Hi._ ” You watched as Ahmad began rummaging through the cabinets, retrieving two small boxes, before heading over to your side, presumably to switch something out. 

“So, how are you feeling?” Doctor Lynn asked, picking up a clipboard that was hanging by the door. She clicked open a pen, and glanced at you, waiting for your response.

“...weak. And Hungry. _Really_ hungry. And… thirsty. I drank Philip’s water when I woke up. Was I not supposed to do that?”

Doctor Lynn chuckled. “No, that’s fine. That’s very good, actually. Do you remember what happened?”

You shook your head, lifting your arm for Ahmad as he began replacing the sensors. “No. The last I remember, I was at the shop.”

“You fainted. You were severely dehydrated, as well as malnourished and lacking sleep. You’ve been on fluids for the last 72 hours, and a nutrition pill was given to you three times a day.” You’d heard of those. Instead of using a feeding tube as you’d had in the past, scientists developed a method of shrinking the necessary particles for nourishment into a capsule. It was used only in medical situations where someone could not eat themselves. Then it hit you.

“ _Wait_ , 72 hours?! I’ve been _asleep_ for _three days?!_ ” 

Doctor Lynn nodded, handing the clipboard off you Ahmad as he finished replacing the sensors on your arm and the IV fluid. “Yes. Your body was _very_ exhausted, you see.” She cleared her throat then and crossed her arms sternly, looking down at you with a very serious expression. “Now, I don’t know why you weren’t taking care of yourself, and you don’t have to tell me. You’re a very healthy woman, so this won’t affect you much in the long run, but you need to take better care of yourself. If you won’t do it for your own safety and health, do it for Philip’s.” 

You tensed up and felt your cheeks flush. “ _Philip?_ ”

“Yes. That boy did not leave your side _once_. He’s been here the whole time, making sure you were comfortable, waiting for you to wake up. He’d only leave the room at the insistence of the nurses to eat himself.”

Your eyes widened, and you sat up a bit straighter, voice quiet. “ _Really?_ ” 

She nodded. “ _Really._ I don’t know what he means to you, but he _clearly_ loves you. So, for his sake, _please_ take better care of yourself.” All you could do was nod, watching as Ahmad handed the clipboard back to Doctor Lynn. She glanced at it, before hanging it back on the wall. “I’ll have a meal sent in.”

“Thank you, Doctor.” 

As she turned to follow Ahmad out the door, she hesitated, her hand gripping the door frame. “And [Name]? I think you should tell him why you didn’t take care of yourself. You don’t seem like the type of person to forget to eat.”

You nodded but didn’t meet her eye as she left the room. Shortly after she left, Philip, Bender, and Kelly all came rushing into the room, various states of panic and worry written across their faces.

“[Name]! _Fuck_ , you scared the _shit_ out of us!” Bender exclaimed. 

“Us?” You quirked a smile, and Philip turned towards the robot in surprise. 

Bender stumbled over his next words. “I-I mean _Fry!_ He was _super_ freaked out--wouldn’t leave your side for shit. I had to call him in sick at work--it was a _whole_ damn thing.” He said dismissively, waving his hand in a ‘shooing’ motion

“We’ve been coming by to bring him food and see if you’d woken up, yet,” Kelly added. Then, after a hesitation, “Girl, what were you _thinking?_ We were worried _sick_ about you!”

You looked down at your lap. “I… I wasn’t. Thinking, that is. I’m… I’m sorry I worried you guys.” You felt tears rick your eyes, looking back up at them. 

Kelly sniffled themself, turning away. “Come on now, no tears. You’re still dehydrated, It’s not good for you.”

“As long as you’re sorry...” Bender mumbled, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly, eyes turned away from you. 

Philip sniffled, wiping at his own eyes with the yellow hoodie he had on. “A-Anyway. You should know, we pushed the opening to the shop back for two weeks.”

Kelly nodded. “Yeah. I made all the arrangements and even asked a couple of the employees to start a little earlier. N’jlob said they’d be in during the mornings, and Jeffrey said he could work nights. We told the press that you just needed more time to recuperate and prepare.” 

You sighed. “Thanks. I’m a _little_ irritated you did it without asking, but I did this to myself. Thanks for all the help, Kelly.” 

They smiled and picked up their phone when it went off suddenly, eyes narrowing in slight annoyance. “Shit. Sorry, [Name]. I gotta go. N’jlob can’t get the lock to turn. I think their slime might have clogged the gears. Feel better!” 

You waved as they rushed from the room, and soon Bender was glaring you down. “You should have told us.”

“W-What?”

“You should have _told us_ you needed help, that you couldn’t handle this _alone_. Not taking care of yourself is dumb, and shitty--something _I_ would do. Not you. You don’t have to tell me why you did it, but you _need_ to tell Fry.” He glanced at the clock on the wall behind you. “We’ll talk more later, my lunch is almost over. Bill said he’d come by after his shift, by the way.” 

“I… okay. Thank you, Bender, I appreciate your help.”

The robot scoffed, rolling his eyes and crossing his arms as he left. “ _Whatever_. What would ya do without me, flesh bag.” With that, he was gone, and the door was closed, leaving you alone with Philip, and the soft and dramatic exclamations of Calculon as he went about his usual escapades. 

Philip went to turn off the television, and took his phone out of his pocket, turning it to silent before placing it face-down on the nightstand. He sat back down in his chair, and sighed, hiding his face in his hands. It was silent for a minute before you heard the sound of sniffling, and you panicked briefly. 

“PJ?”

He turned to look at you, a bitterly relieved smile on his face as he cried. “You _said_ you would tell me if something was wrong. We _agreed_ to tell each other. You _promised_ , [Name]! I can’t--” He let out a sob, trying to calm himself down as he turned to look at the ceiling. “I _can’t_ lose you, too. Not _again_. Not _ever_ again.” 

You felt your own eyes start to water. “I’m sorry, Philip.”

“ _Are_ you though?!” He snapped. “Are you _really_ sorry?! You _need_ to take care of yourself! You _HAVE_ to!! You _can’t_ just--” He gestured wildly, clenching his fingers before throwing his arms up in the air in exasperation, frustrated tears escaping his eyes as he stared at the ceiling. 

“...I’m sorry.”

“I should be mad at you. I should be _angry_ , and pissed, and irritated--and I _am_ \--but mostly I’m just disappointed. And sad. _Fuck_ , [Name]. I see how you felt now; when my appendix ruptured? It is _SO_ scary to watch someone you love lay motionless in a hospital bed.” He sniffled again, head tilting back down so he could wipe at his eyes, before turning to look at you. “Why did you do it? I _know_ you,” he reached out his hand, his brown eyes sad as you held your trembling hand in his own. “You would _never_ do something without a reason. So _why?_ ” His voice was quiet, so quiet compared to the raised tone he’d used only moments before. 

Your lip trembled. “I… was trying to distract myself.”

“Distract yourself? From _what?_ ”

“From all of this! I was _so_ happy when I found out you were alive and okay, but _fuck_ , Philip. They’re _dead_. Our families, our friends-- _everyone_ we _ever_ knew is _gone._ ” You cried, breaking down despite the lack of water in your system. “They’re _all gone_ , and I’ll _never_ see them again. I miss them so, _so_ much. I keep wondering, why did I do this? I left because you were gone, but I traded my _whole fucking life_ for this. And what do I get? A dead family, and a group of people I’ll _never_ see again. I can never hear them laugh again, see them smile, make fun of them when they do something stupid--it’s _all_ gone. And I’m never getting it back.” As you continued to break down, Philip retracted his hand. 

“Do… do you regret doing it?” Your head whipped up, and you looked at him, almost shocked he would ever say such a thing. He looked nervous, and scared, and vulnerable, and you felt a fresh wave of tears overcome you. 

“No! Of course not. I will never, _ever_ , EVER regret this. I miss them _so_ much, but _you’re_ here. All I need is you. I just,” You felt your cheeks heat up, and you looked at him from underneath your eyelashes. “You’re all I need. I’m sorry for worrying you. Please, stay with me.”

Philip wiped his eyes once more, before reaching for your hand again, his own cheeks pink as he smiled, small and private. “Always. I’ll _always_ stay with you.”

Just outside the door, Bender sighed, uncrossing his arms as he made his way down the hallway to exit the hospital. “Fucking _idiots_. The both of them. God damn!” He could be a few minutes late from lunch, he thought as he opened up his cell phone once he retrieved it from his chest. “They _better_ fucking thank me for this.” With that, he hit call and waited for the ringtone. 

“Bender! What a _LOVELY~_ surprise! Have you _finally_ decided to pay me back~?”

“Actually, I need a favor.”


	11. Wonderwall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Bender?” 
> 
> Turning, the robot saw you standing there, hugging yourself with swollen pink eyes and Philip nowhere to be found. “Hey, where’s Fry? Are you guys done?”
> 
> “He knows.” 
> 
> Bender blinked. “What?”
> 
> “Philip _knows_ , and he left.” You managed out, although your voice was quiet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry for the wait, but I hope this long chapter makes up for it. It's been a little difficult to figure out what I wanted to happen next, but I think I've got it now. Chapter 12 is already in the works as well, so please be patient. Thanks for sticking through with me!
> 
> Get ready for ANGST! ANGST! ANGST!
> 
> They're listening to the album Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys released in 1966, and I also had to google what the weather was like on Friday 27th of the October of 1989, and decided that 70 degrees was too hot out. So I made it chilly. Also, while Wonderwall by Oasis is the title and I think the message and meaning behind the song suits this chapter, I also think Wouldn't It Be Nice could be an alternative title, so it might be changed later on. 
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> Edit 11/25/2020: it has come to my attention that the last paragraph was missing, so it has been re-added

"I can carry my own bags, Philip!" You laughed, weakly reaching for your backpack and purse, but not really trying to grab them.

"It's fine, [Name]! You're still recovering, after all." You hummed in acknowledgment and glared half-heartedly as Philip struggled to open the door to the apartment building.

You had just been released from the hospital that morning and had taken a cab back to _Robot Arms Appts_ after stopping by the shop to pick up your belongings. Due to stress, you’d decided to push the opening of the shop back another few weeks, so it would be opening on July 1st instead of June 1st. With that time, you planned to hire more help as well as rest and spend some quality time with Philip. Sure, you saw him a lot since you lived together, but you hadn’t hung out with just the two of you since you had been unfrozen. Which, in terms of years from your perspective, was almost five. 

Today was one of those days, as well. Philip had taken a vacation to help you recover, as well as spend time with you, so it was a day of relaxing. Or so you thought. As soon as you had unlocked the apartment door, Bender had the both of you blindfolded and whisked away. 

“Bender, I swear to god if you’re trying to sell my organs again--” Philip started, but was cut off with a groan. 

“I _SAID_ I was sorry! And _no_. I set somethin’ up for the two of you. Well, for [Name]. I pulled a lot of strings for this, so you better enjoy it, assholes.” You heard Bender grumble. 

You knew you were in a taxi at that point but had no idea where you could possibly be headed. “Can you give us a hint?” You asked, leaning forward towards the sound of Bender’s voice in the front seat. 

“Yeah!” Philip piped up from your left. 

“Hmmmmmm, no. Don’t wanna. Now shut up and enjoy the ride.” 

Philip, predictably, continued to protest and even started bantering with Bender for the remainder of the ride. You laughed and listened, of course, butting in at certain points, but otherwise just relished in the sound of Philip’s voice, alive and well and cracking when it got too high. Eventually, the taxi stopped, and Bender helped the two of you out and removed your blindfolds. You were in an alley, with a dumpster off to one side and a restaurant’s side door on the other. There was an access grate towards the back, and you were confused. Philip wasn’t. 

“ _Wait!_ This is--!”

Bender smacked his hand over the man’s mouth to shush him. “Don’t ruin the surprise, asshat.” Philip nodded, eyes wide and almost hopeful, and Bender removed his hand. “Follow me.” With that, he made his way towards the grate, and chuckled at the bent bars, before flipping the unlocked hatch open and heading inside. “What are you guys waiting for? Come on!” He waved you over, and his head disappeared. 

“Go on, [Name]! I’ll follow you!” Philip insisted, gently coaxing you towards the open hatch and the subsequent ladder, before helping you down and into the hole. 

“Is it safe?” you asked no one in particular as the metal of the ladder creaked under the combined weight of Bender and yourself. 

“Of course it is! Why else would I bring you here?” Bender sassed as he hit the ground, moving to the side as you continued your trek down, Philip close behind. 

“To murder us?” You joked, a smile on your face as you hit the ground as well, Bender helping you steady yourself and offering you a granola bar and water he had in his chest compartment. You took them, even though you weren’t hungry. 

“Hardy Har har, very funny, [Last Name].” He sassed, before turning to Philip and yelling up the ladder, “ _Fry!_ Hurry _up!_ ”

“I’m coming, I’m coming!” He yelled right back, slowly making his way down the ladder. “Just let me--” A few more steps, and he was planted solidly on the ground, arms out in a ‘Ta-Da!’ motion. You clapped as well as you could with a water bottle and a half-eaten granola bar, cheering for him, and Bender rolled his eyes at the stupidity of the both of you. 

“Alright, enough. Now for the surprise.” He reached into his chest again and grabbed a key, turning around to a metal door directly behind the three of you. It was then you noticed how small the space was--only about eighteen square feet or the size of an elevator. Bender unlocked the door and motioned for you to walk through it, taking your wrapper and empty bottle as you passed.

You did so, directly onto a metal balcony with an attached staircase that swirled around the column you seemed to have come out of. It took a second or two for your eyes to adjust to the low lighting, but when it did, you found yourself almost in tears. “ _This is--_ ” You tried, turning to Philip, hands clutching the railing of the balcony so tightly that your knuckles turned white. 

He nodded, smile sad as he took your hands in his own, running his thumbs over the back of them to get to relax. “Yeah. Come on. I think Bender has a surprise for us.” He said gently leading you to the staircase and heading down before you. It was then you noticed that Bender had already begun his way down, and was quite close to the bottom of the stairs. 

The two of you hurried after him; Philip walking with confidence as he had clearly been here before, and you cautiously making your way with them. Eventually, you made it to the ground, and when you closed your eyes you could almost see the old New York come to life. Instead, you saw crumbled buildings, columns interspersed here and there, and smelled… you’re not entirely sure what it was. Dust, maybe? Whatever it was, it wasn’t entirely bad or good, it was just neutral. You let out a breath you didn’t know you were holding and felt Philip wrap his arm around your waist, leaning his head on your shoulder. 

“Are you okay?” His voice was quiet. 

“I… yeah.” You cleared your throat and removed yourself from his embrace, and his face flashed in hurt as you stepped away and turned to Bender, who was smoking a cigar. “So uh, lead the way!” 

With that, the three of you were off. Philip and yourself technically knew how to navigate the rotting streets better than your robot friend, but he had set up this surprise, so you let him lead the way. Then, as the streets got more residential and more familiar, you found yourself speeding up and your heart beginning to race. Finally, _finally_ , the street name came into view, and you took off into a run, ignoring the calls of your friends as you raced towards your home, not knowing what to expect. You came to a panting halt in front of the two houses you’d grown up in and found you were speechless. Your heart sunk as you stood there, breath evening out as you stared at the homes before you, the dim lighting making them look even more depressing. 

The roof of the Fry household was caved-in in multiple places, but this wasn’t new. A year before you’d frozen yourself, lightning had struck a phone pole near the house, and had fallen in the middle of the night. Instead of having it fixed, Yancy Sr just moved himself and his wife into an apartment, leaving the house to Yancy Jr, who also did nothing. Too sad to go back inside, you hadn’t done anything either, so the house stayed the way it was. The junk in the front yard was the same, and the junk on the porch was the same--it was almost like the house hadn’t been touched. But the paint was old and peeling, and the grass was long dead, replaced with some strange ivy that crawled up the sides and inside holes that _definitely_ were new. 

Your own house though--you felt your throat close, and your eyes begin to water. The entire roof had caved into the attic, and one side of the house seemed to be sinking, ready to fall over and into your basement. A few of the windows were cracked and shattered, and your mailbox had fallen over with time. A few of the columns on the porch had fallen, and the overhang was caving in. Miraculously, it seemed as though your own window was intact, and for that you were grateful. Littering the yard and lined along the street were tons of your old belongings; everything from dishes to clothes, to books, and decorations. You noticed a bit of orange tulle peeking out from a box and slowly made your way over, ignoring Philip and Bender as they stopped behind you. You slowly opened up the box, and pulled out the tulle, finding your Halloween costume from when you were 15 years old. 

“[Name]?” Philip asked quietly, afraid to disturb whatever peace you’d created.

You couldn’t help but be thrown back into the past.

\--------

 _“PJ, come_ on! _We gotta go get_ changed! _” You yelled over your shoulder, running away from the bus stop to your house._

_“W-wait!” Philip yelled weakly, reaching out an arm before stopping halfway home, panting as he rested his hands on his knees, fumbling in his pocket for his inhaler._

_You stopped, walking the twenty or so feet back to your friend to help him out. Arm around his shoulders, you helped him bring the inhaler to his mouth, pushing the button as he took a breath. Once his breathing had evened out and he was standing upright again, you put the inhaler back into the pocket of his hoodie. “Sorry. I got excited.”_

_He gave you a small smile, adjusting his backpack on his shoulders. “It’s fine, now let’s go get in costume! It starts at five, right?” He asked, continuing the trek home and glancing at the watch he wore during school hours._

_“Yeah. My mom said she’d give us a ride there, and to call when we wanted to come home, so we should bring some extra change for the phone.” You explained, leading the way up to your porch, past the carved pumpkins and other various fall decorations, and unlocking the door with the key Philip handed you. “Momma! We’re home!” You called out, plopping your backpack down by the door and kicking off your shoes. Philip did the same and made a beeline to the bathroom after he closed the front door. Following the smell of cinnamon and apples, you made your way into the kitchen, waving to your mom as she plated your afternoon snack for the two of you._

_“Go ahead and eat up, then get ready, okay?” She said, gesturing for you to sit down at the kitchen table. You did as she instructed and soon a small, steaming plate of apples, pears, and squash chunks was placed in front of you. It was speckled with cinnamon and brown sugar, and you felt your mouth water._

_“Thanks!” You said, taking the fork handed to you and taking a bite as Philip sat down to eat his own snack._

_It was a perfect pick-me-up for that late October of 1989. It was somewhat chilly outside, a light breeze rustling your hair and the leaves on the ground. As the sky started to turn darker, the warm lights of the houses would appear, thrilled screams and laughter of other children as they played outside that Friday afternoon filling up the air. It was the 27th of October, and your high school was holding a Halloween party later that night._

_After stealing a few pieces of squash from Philip’s plate when he wasn’t looking, the two of you finished up your snack and headed up to your room to change into your costumes. You were going as a pumpkin witch and Philip as your vampire companion._

_The both of you stripped down to your underwear, turning on the small radio you had in your room to listen to Halloween songs as you got ready. Philip helped you lace up the vest that went over your costume, and you helped Philip with the lacing on his own vest. Then it came to his makeup. You used a very pale powder foundation you’d found in the drugstore and mixed it with some white power makeup, and brushed it all over his neck and face. You used a dark eye shadow around his eyes to make them look sunken in, and one of your mom’s paler lipsticks. The final touch was the blood drops and the fangs, which were held in with denture paste over his own teeth. He’d even spent the month wearing them at home to get used to them so he wouldn’t talk with a lisp._

_Next was your makeup. It wasn’t makeup as much as it was black lipstick and a few orange and black dots around your eyes and cheeks, but in the end, it looked good. Before you left your room, Philip had insisted on giving your cheeks some blush, and he was right--it helped pull the look together. Hat pinned to your head and broom strapped in a modified sword holster/belt, you turned to smirk at Philip as he adjusted his cloak. He grinned back, fangs and all, and gestured to the door._

_“Shall we?”_

_You nodded, smirk turning into a smile. “Yup! Let’s go!”_

\--------

“Are you okay?” Philip asked, placing a hand on your shoulder. 

You flinched, coming out of your memory. “I--yeah. Sorry. I just remembered this Halloween, is all.” You said, holding up the old dress so he could see. 

“Oh! I remember that! Jimmy barfed all over Mr. Smith because he ate so much candy!” He laughed, and you smiled, taking a quick picture of the dress and putting it neatly back into the box. You’d come back for all of this stuff later, you decided. 

Finally standing up, you turned to Bender. “Why’d you decide that this was a good surprise?” Your tone wasn’t exactly rude, but it wasn’t super friendly either. 

The robot looked as nervous as he could. “Well, I just thought ‘cha could use a little break from the future, so I set something up. Come on.” He headed towards Philip’s house, but paused halfway there, turning abruptly and narrowing his eyes as he pointed at the two of you threateningly. “Don’t think I like you guys or anything for this. Your whining was just getting annoying!”

You smiled, amused. "Sure, Bender. Whatever you say." Philip just snickered, and the three of you entered the house. 

Philip stiffened as you walked in the door, seeming to shrink into himself a bit. You grabbed his hand from behind in an attempt to calm him down, but you needed the support as well. You ignored the state of the house, letting Bender lead you into the basement. Strangely enough, he flicked the light switch, and the power came whirring to life. You blinked, adjusting to the lighting, and then blinked again, doing a double-take at the room. The bomb shelter looked almost exactly as it did when you were a kid, the only differences being a small refrigerator, a record player, and two bean bag chairs set up close to Philip's old record safe. In the corner underneath the stairs was a small generator, sitting next to the old oxygen tanks and propane tanks. You eyed them suspiciously, and with a quick once-over, you deemed them all empty and safe where they were. 

" _Woah_. It looks exactly like it did when we were kids, [Name]!" Philip's eyes sparkled as he grinned ear to ear. 

"Yeah! How did you even do all of this, Bender?" 

The robot shrugged. "Eh. Nothin' a little bit of cleaning won't do." You smiled as tears came to your eyes, and Bender looked away, continuing to explain. "Anyway, there's sandwiches in the fridge, as well as some alcohol and water bottles, and I uh, cleaned the records. I'll head on up. There's a bar up top across the street, so come get me when you're done." He didn't meet your eyes. 

"Thank you, Bender." Philip said, turning from where he had been running his hands along the old workbench, surprising yourself and Bender, who mumbled out a quick 'You're welcome,' before he left. 

Silence quickly overcame you and your best friend and you looked over the old basement, reminiscing of days long past. Eventually, you came to stand by his side, as both of you glanced around the room.

"What do you want to do?" You asked, curious, gaze meeting his own. 

Philip glanced at the record player, a playful smirk stretching out upon his face. "I have an idea."

\--------

" _WOUUUULDNT IT BE NICE IF WE COULD WAAAAKE UP, IN THE MORNING WHEN THE DAY IS NEEEEEW!_ " You sang loudly, dancing around the basement, a beer in your hands. 

" _AND AFTER HAVING SPENT THE DAY TOGEEEETHER, HOOOLD EACH OTHER CLOSE THE WHOLE NIGHT THROUUUUUGH!_ " Philip continued loudly, a beer in his hand as well, miming the lyrics to the song terribly as it played from the record player. 

You attempted to continue singing but instead found yourself drunkenly laughing as Philip continued to mime badly along to the lyrics of _‘Wouldn’t It Be Nice_ ’ by The Beach Boys. Eventually, it ended, and the two of you collapsed in a fit of giggles onto the bean bag chairs, _'You Still Believe In Me'_ being drowned out by your laughing as Philip continued to make funny faces. 

Taking a swig of your beer, you closed your eyes and sighed, your content smile slowly replacing itself with a neutral frown. If you pretended hard enough, you could almost believe you were in high school, staying up late on a Friday night as Yancy yelled at the two of you to keep it down while he studied. Philip soon caught the look on your face and placed his beer on the ground, turning his whole body to face you with an inquisitive look across his features. 

"Are you okay?" 

"...I wonder if it's still there…" you muttered out. 

"What's still where?" 

"My letter. The one where they told me whether or not I'd get published. I never opened it. I left it on my desk." Your smile became a bit bitter as you turned to face him. "You did promise we'd open it together after all. When you disappeared, I couldn't work up the nerve to open it myself, and the publisher had to call me after I didn't respond." 

Philip looked down, a mix of sadness and shame coming from him, "I'm sorry," he seemed to be thinking next, as his eyebrows scrunched up and he sat up a bit. "Do… do you wanna go check?" 

You blinked at him, surprised. "What?"

He sat up further and leaned towards you almost urgently. "We can go check right now!! Your side of the house seemed to be stable enough, so let's go see if the letter is still there!" He stood up fully, holding both of his hands out to you with another one of his signature grins. All you could do was nod, placing your hands in his and letting Philip pull you to your feet and up the stairs. 

Once outside, he wasted no time in marching to your house, leading the way with his hand securely grasping your own. You said nothing as he led the way quickly inside, not giving you too much time to look around. From what you could see though, other than the parts of the caved-in ceiling and roof, your house looked almost untouched. A layer of dust covered everything, but it looked almost like your mother had just left to run some errands. You turned away and followed Philip up the stairs and down the hallway to your old bedroom. The door was cracked, and you ignored the split in the floor where the house seemed to be sinking into the ground as your bedroom door was slowly pushed open. There was a creaking sound from the hinges and a cloud of dust as the old door moved, and the both of you coughed while it settled. 

Finally, you took a step into the room, quickly followed by Philip. Your room looked exactly the way you had left it when you'd moved out, and you found yourself choking back tears. Which is why you hadn't noticed Philip make his way to your desk, or become engrossed with something on it. 

"[Name]," he quietly called. 

You turned, wiping the tears from your eyes to see him holding a letter. You thought he had opened your acceptance letter without you until you recognized the letter sitting on the table in a plastic bag. Puzzled, as you hadn't done that yourself, you reached for the letter Philip held out to you, although he didn't meet your eyes. You recognized your mother's handwriting instantly and saw that date to be March 31st, 2005. A year after you'd frozen yourself. 

_Dear Name,_

_It's been a little over a year since you disappeared. For a while, we tried to listen to your wishes, but Yancy pushed us to look for you. So, after 3 months, we hired a private investigator to look for you. It took him a bit of time, but eventually, he found you. And we went to the address. And we made an appointment, and there you were. It was so strange, you looked as though you were sleeping. And in a way, I guess you were.  
Yancy cried first, and we didn't know why until we saw what he was looking at. Just a few spaces over was Philip, 995 years to go. And then you, 999 years. Your sister and I broke down then. I wish Philip's parents could have been there, but they had moved to Texas months after you'd disappeared and we knew they wouldn't bother to come. I don't know if it matters to write this down, but we paid for Philip’s stay with some of the money you'd left us.  
The company had been trying to figure out what to do with a man they had no recollection of and were happy to accept our paperwork and payment.  
I hope that when you wake up, you'll find each other again and be happy. I know that it's hard to move on, and hard to let go, but we truly believe you'll be happier in the future, and happier with Philip. Please don't mourn for us, or regret the decision you've made. We may be long gone by the time you read this(if you ever do), but we love you. We love both of you so much. We'll always miss you, and I hope your wishes finally come true. _

_Forever yours,  
-Mom_

_P.S. If Philip is with you, please tell him you love him. I think it's time he knows._

The tears rolling down your face slowed down as you neared the bottom, and your eyes went wide as you read her final words. Philip had read this first. _Philip had read this first._ _**Philip Had Read This First.**_

Your hands shook as you held the paper, many different emotions running through your head, but one stood out the most. _Fear._ With a gulp and trembling hands, you put the letter back on your old desk and turned to face your best friend. For the first time in a very long time, his face was almost completely unreadable. Save for a little furrow in his brow, there was nothing going on on his face. His usual expressive brown eyes were almost lifeless as he watched you. Your heart pounded in your chest, and you attempted to calm yourself down as you waited for him to speak. _This_ is why you never told him. This face, the one you'd only seen one other time when his grandmother had died. 

"You love me?" His voice was quiet, but in the silence of the ruins of Old New York, it was almost deafening.

"I… I do." You couldn't meet his eyes anymore

"How long?" 

"...A while…"

" _How. Long._ " He reiterated. His voice was hard, almost demanding. And if you listened closely, it almost seemed… desperate. 

You gulped, choking back tears as you met his eye again. "I only realized in middle school, but probably since before then." He didn't speak for almost a full minute. Each second was agonizing, and you wished that it wasn't so quiet. It suffocated you. 

"...Why… why didn't you _tell_ me?" He definitely sounded desperate now, and upset.

Your lip trembled. "I _couldn't,_ Philip. You were _happy_ , and every time you got a new girlfriend you were _so_ excited. And I was excited _for you!_ I was happy because _you_ were happy, and I didn't want to ruin it with my dumb feelings. I never intended to tell you, or for you to find out." A blatant lie, but he didn't need to know that. 

" _So you just kept it a secret?!_ " He gestured wildly, voice raising. 

" _I had to!_ When you left, it _destroyed_ me, PJ! The _only person_ I had _ever_ loved was gone, and probably was _never_ coming back. So when I came here and found you, I didn't want to ruin it by telling you that I loved you." You were crying again, the tears flowing freely down your face and dripping from your chin to your shirt. "I _finally_ had you back! After _four fucking years_ of thinking you were dead, I had my best friend back!" you sniffled, and looked down, your voice small and quiet, "But you moved on without me." 

There was another long pause. The only sounds being your little sniffles and Philip’s heavy breathing. Wordlessly, you reached into your pocket to pull out his emergency inhaler, handing it over and waiting for his breathing to even out again. When he was calm again, Philip turned away from you, giving you one last tearful glance.

"I'm sorry." With that, he left the room. 

You listened to him leave, and when his figure turned the corner of the street and disappeared from view, you finally fell to your knees. Letting out a loud wail of agony, you felt your heart break all over again. 

It wasn't fair.

\--------

As Bender took another swig of his beer, he sighed loudly at the TV that was playing a newer re-run of _All My Circuits_. "Calculon, she's been cheating on you!" He yelled, watching as Calculon touched his head with his wife’s on his way out to work, as yet another robot looked on from the side longingly at Monique. His attention was taken away from the screen though when he heard his name. 

“Bender?” 

Turning, the robot saw you standing there, hugging yourself with swollen pink eyes and Philip nowhere to be found. “Hey, where’s Fry? Are you guys done?”

“He knows.” 

Bender blinked. “What?”

“Philip _knows_ , and he left.” You managed out, although your voice was quiet. 

“He just _left_ you there?” The robot asked, almost appalled.

You nodded, looking at the floor. “He didn’t say much. Just that he was sorry, and then he walked out of the house and left.” You sniffled pathetically. “Bender, I wanna go _home_. I wanna go back to my warm bed, and my mom, and my sister’s visits, and Yancy yelling at us to be quiet, and PJ throwing bread at the ducks, and my _stupid_ , dumb, newspaper editing job-- _I wanna go back._ ” You cried, wiping your face with your hands. “I wouldn’t have come if I’d known it would end up like this!” You sobbed, and a few of the bar patrons looked your way, whispering in recognition and confusion. 

Panicked, Bender quickly got up, smacking a $100 bill on the bar counter and quickly ushering you outside into the dusk. He hailed a cab, and once you were in he quickly called the only other emergency contact you had on your phone. 

“Applied Cryogenics, this is Bill, how can I help you?” 

“Hey, Bill. It’s Bender.”


End file.
